I wish
by Keki186
Summary: Trapped in a fake land in an unfamiliar realm Regina and Emma have to work together to fight their way out of there. It's much harder than they had imagined and is even more difficult when they realize there are some unresolved issues... Will they make it back? Rating might change. Based on 6x10 (of course).
1. Emma's wish

_**A/N: This is my very first OUAT story but watching 6x10 I just had to do this... I had promised myself to never (again) publish a story before it was finished or at least almost finished but I couldn't help myself. I don't know how long this is going to become, a lot will depend if anyone is even interested in this story. For now it's all still kind of a mystery, even to me.**_

 _ **I'm not a native speaker but I try to reread my stories as many times as possible hoping to find all mistakes, of course any writer knows that it's almost impossible to find them all. So if you find any please let me know and I will correct them.**_

 _ **About this chapter : this is my take on what Emma went through when the wish was granted. SPOILER ALERT for 6x10! **_

_**I don't own anything obviously (disclaimer).**_

 _ **I hope you enjoy reading, the next chapter will be up in a short while because I wrote them at the same time. If you like to tell me what you think should happen next then leave a review. I'm not making any promises but ideas are always welcome.**_

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"I wish... that Emma Swan's wish to have never been the Savior... be granted." The Evil Queen said.

Aladdin had no choice but to comply, he tried to fight it of course but it was to no avail. He raised his arm and the magic within him did the rest. The Evil Queen's wish was granted...

~~~oOo~~~

 _Swords clashing... a blonde figure falling to the ground... a sign 'Welcome to Storybrooke'... The Evil Queen laughing victoriously... Mom, Dad, strange man forging plans to defeat her... Savior... Henry... Magic... Falling falling falling..._

Emma woke with a start, sweating and gasping for air. She felt sore in some parts of her body and realized she had fallen from her bed. She rolled onto her back and tried to catch her breath. She inhaled deep and let it out slowly, her eyes closed. When all the air had left her lungs she felt much more relaxed. She inhaled again, much calmer this time and slowly opened her eyes.

She was about to get up when something shiny caught her attention. She tentatively reached under her bed and pulled a sword from under it. A sword?! She was surprised by the weight but somehow holding it felt rather natural. Which was strange because Emma had seldom held a sword. Her father and mother had wanted to teach her, but Emma wasn't into sword fighting and had declined. Why should she learn how to wield one when there was no need for it?

She was well protected by the guards and her parents. There was also nothing she needed protecting from. The Dark One was locked up and the Evil Queen had been successfully banished by her own parents. She smiled to herself feeling safe but something was still bothering her.

Her brow furrowed and she tried to recall what had made her fall out of bed. A dream! A strange dream! There were a lot of familiar faces but also new ones and everyone she knew looked different. Younger also. The place where they had been, looked unfamiliar as well... no castles, less nature, smaller dwellings of a kind she had never encountered before. What was it called? Emma tried to remember if the name had come up. It had! Storybrooke! But Emma had never heard of such a place. Her frown deepened.

The Evil Queen! She remembered with a start, she had only seen paintings of Regina because her parents had gotten rid of her before Emma was even born. She might never have met the Evil Queen in real life, nevertheless she had definitely seen her in her dream. None of it was making sense to Emma and how had that sword ended up under her bed?

Savior... the word sounded odd and familiar at the same time. Nothing made sense. Still sat on the floor next to her bed deep in thought, Emma put the sword down next to her and shook her head trying to rid her mind of the fantastical dream. Emma remembered it was her birthday and again she smiled to herself.

She wondered where Henry was because usually he brought her breakfast on her birthdays. He was probably practicing his sword fighting skills because he was about the become a knight of the realm, his lifelong dream. Emma lovingly reminisced how a much smaller Henry had been playing with swords when he was barely able to walk properly. The smile on her face only increased. Thinking about her son made her realize how perfect her life was, there was nothing more she could wish for, she had it all. The only thing that was missing, was a partner maybe. Losing Neal still pained her but she knew he was at peace and she hadn't met anyone besides Neal that she wanted to spend the rest of her life with.

The princess got dressed and went in search of her parents. When she couldn't find them, she figured they were probably busy preparing her birthday feast like they did every year. It didn't matter that their only daughter had been in her thirties by now.

Emma busied herself until it was time to attend her party. She entered the hall where all her visitors were already waiting for her. A big cake with one small star-shaped candle was placed on a table. She knew the party wouldn't start until she blew it out. Quickly glancing around she saw all her friends, her parents, however Henry wasn't there. It didn't matter, he had probably lost track of time again, like boys his age are known to do.

She closed her eyes and briefly wondered what she would wish for... some random thoughts ran through her mind (mostly from her dream) but in the end she chose not to wish for anything because there simply wasn't anything else she wanted. Like she had realized earlier today she was completely happy. She blew it out and everyone started applauding and congratulating her, she opened her eyes and smiled warmly at them. She looked at her parents, standing only a couple feet away, beaming proudly.

"Mommy. Daddy" she smiled at them even warmer.

"So tell us, Princess, what did you wish for?" Grumpy asked.

"Not a thing." She answered honestly. "Everything I could ever want is right here." The words left her mouth, but had a bitter taste. Suddenly images of her dream flashed through her mind again and Emma wasn't sure if she really had everything she could want. For a brief moment her life felt like a lie. No, that couldn't be true!

She tried to compose herself before anyone noticed something was off but of course her mother had noticed. She walked over and asked what was wrong. Although she asked warmly, there was a demanding quality in her question making it clear she didn't want to be placated with nonsense.

Emma sighed before facing her mother and slowly starting to retell her dream. Her mother tried to reassure her but the blonde didn't want to be reassured. The more she was talking about it, the more excited she became. "But in my dream, I was in this strange, fantastical land unlike anything I'd ever seen before, and we were still fighting her..." A strange sensation ran through her and her heart suddenly beat much faster. "...all of us. And this place... had a name. It was called... Storybrooke." By now she was almost breathless.

Her father placed a comforting hand on hers and told her it was only a dream but Emma wasn't letting go just yet. If it had been just a dream, why had it felt so real. Why was a small part of her longing for the adventure and the excitement? For the first time in her life she had the feeling her parents weren't really listening to what she was trying to tell them.

"Then when I woke up, I found this." She showed them the sword that had been under her bed this morning.

Again her mother had an answer ready. "Well, one of the servants must have put it there. They were cleaning the armory."

This didn't make any sense to Emma, the armory was nowhere near her bedroom so why would the servants put a sword under _her_ bed... there was enough storage room to put weapons in, they really didn't need her bedroom too.

She wanted to disagree and tell her mother those things but they were interrupted by a very apologetic Henry. As Emma had figured he had lost track of time but she forgave him easily because she loved her son and knew that his big day was soon coming and she just wanted him to be happy. That's all she ever wanted, wasn't it. The love for her son and her parents made her put the dream in the back of her mind. They were right of course, a dream was just a dream... nothing to worry about.

She proudly watched her son with the sword declaring he would defend them all. If they ever needed a savior again, he was on his way to become one.

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 _ **Thanks for reading, let me know what you think. Chapter two is from Regina's point of view. Later on in the story both views will probably come together.**_


	2. Regina to the rescue

_**A/N: Without further ado I give you chapter two... Enjoy! Thanks for all the support!  
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Regina had been benched by Emma and she didn't like it one bit. The fact that Emma was going to face the Evil Queen without her frightened her. Ever since the blonde had been having visions about her demise, she seemed to have a death wish. She didn't care that she was about to die, she acted like she had made peace with it. But Regina wasn't ready to lose her just yet, not so soon after losing Robin.

She wasn't ready to raise Henry alone, surely not with her evil half still around. It was funny how the Queen had been right that there had been a time when she wanted nothing more than Emma to stay away from her son and now she couldn't picture a future without the blonde in it. Over the past years they had been through too much, they cared deeply for each other and she liked to have her around. She was good for Henry and she was the only one that truly understood some of her darker parts.

They had been gone some time already or was she just being impatient and hadn't it really been that long? Regina paced up and down the small suffocating living room. At moments like these she longed for her mansion, there was always more than enough space to never feel suffocated. Her eye caught the sleeping form of Snow and suddenly she felt protective of the brunette she had once - what seemed like a lifetime ago - called her stepdaughter. Although she never had any motherly feelings towards her.

Regina groaned, why was her dark half so much cleverer than she. The Queen had been one step ahead the entire time, nevertheless the sword had startled her. She hadn't been expecting to be hurt by it or had she not been expecting Emma to be the one to hurt her? Or was Regina the one that had been surprised by the latter? She groaned again, thinking about it, trying to make sense of it at all only made everything seem that much more complicated!

She had been surprised that Emma had lashed out without thinking about the consequences until after she had done it. She knew deep down that Emma would never intentionally hurt her but still... she could have and the blonde knew it. The concern she had shown immediately afterwards made up for her brief foolishness, Regina couldn't help but smile at herself. For a split second she had been afraid that Emma didn't care for her or her wellbeing but she did, she was just angry and frustrated... Like they all were.

Why was it that the Queen always seemed to know what Regina was thinking and feeling? Would it work the other way around or had she been right when she said that Regina was the weaker half because she didn't want to tap in that dark energy... The brunette closed her eyes and tried to feel or think what the Queen was thinking. Had Emma been successful? Her heart beat fast from excitement or was it fear? No it was definitely excitement. But how? Why? If Emma had gone to defeat her, why was she feeling excitement? Oh no... Regina feared the worst, the Evil Queen had defeated Emma? That couldn't be right, could it?

"Henry!" Regina called out and her son immediately bolted down the stairs.

"Mom, what's wrong?!" His concerned expression was the perfect mirror image of his mother's.

"I don't know, but something is... we need to go!"

In no time they made their way over to Granny's, where they saw David and Hook but no Emma. When she heard them say they had no clue where Emma was something inside of her snapped! Idiots! Why had she listened to Emma? She should have known better than to trust those two by now!

Did they even know Emma? How could it be that neither her father nor her _boyfriend_ had any idea where she could have gone?! Didn't they talk at all? They were living together, how was it possible that he didn't even know Emma's secrets? At this moment he confirmed Regina's previous thoughts about Emma being too good for him! She now understood why he had this weird connection with David, they were both idiots with a hero complex but no actual clue of how to be one. She felt a headache coming on, then out of the blue an idea struck her, she knew exactly what she was going to do.

Their connection! She left brusquely and went to her office where she knew the Queen would be, celebrating her latest victory. Why she hadn't thought of this before...

Regina strolled into her office where she saw the Queen all but assaulting Aladdin and enjoying a cocktail.

"Having fun in my office?"

"Well, as a matter of fact, I was about to." The Queen said while touching Aladdin inappropriately.

Regina rolled her eyes at herself and wondered why she had been like that, incapable of loving anyone but always taking advantage in any way she could. Using her sexuality trying to fill the hole in her heart. But she didn't have time to dwell on that, she had more important things to do.

Save the Savior! Save Emma.

Regina indulged the Evil Queen a little, her plan slowly unfolding. Again the Queen let no opportunity pass by to remind Regina how much she had always wished to get rid of Emma. Well, that was in the past... what she wanted more than anything at this very moment was getting Emma back.

"Yes, I... may not be able to get a hold of that genie lamp but you're right... We _are_ the same person, which means you're not the only master of the lamp." Regina watched as recognition dawned on her evil half's face.

"No."

"Yes." Aladdin sounded surprised but in a good way.

Regina turned towards him and said "Genie of the lamp, I wish to be sent to the same place as Emma Swan." She felt exhilarated, she had no idea where she was going to end up. She had no plan, no weapon, nothing. Just her wish to get to Emma, to bring her back. And even though she had nothing, she was unafraid, she had hope that in the end everything would turn out just fine. She smiled and closed her eyes and when she opened them she was standing in the middle of a forest.

She felt proud of herself, it had worked. Or at least it seemed it had, because Emma was nowhere to be seen and although Regina had no idea where she was going to end up, the middle of a forest wasn't it. But Emma had to be close, that was what she had wished for. To be where Emma was.

"Em-ma!" Regina tried, but got no answer. "Emma!"

She heard something and turned her attention towards the road. It took her only a second to recognize the whistling dwarves and she was very happy, surely they would know where to find Emma. She ran towards them, even more ecstatic.

"Hey! Heeey, dwarves! I'm looking for Emma. Have you seen her?" Regina sounded more hopeful than she had ever in her entire life. That's how confident she was everything was going to be alright.

The dwarves just stared at her as if they had just seen a ghost and Regina wondered if maybe they hadn't understood her, so she tried again. She repeated her question slower this time. However, it wasn't that they hadn't heard or understood her, they were afraid of her... of the Evil Queen. She tried to explain she wasn't her anymore, but to no avail. They ran for their lives, yelling something about warning them and a war not being over. It was a blow to the gut, it had been a long time since she had experienced people being afraid of her like that. How had she ever enjoyed it? It was a mystery.

She knew that if she were to find Emma she would have to do it alone, no one was going to help her. She understood now that she was in the Enchanted Forest but a fake one. One where she was still known as the Evil Queen, that somehow she hadn't been able to curse them. That meant that Emma had grown up with her parents and had never become the Savior.

It was probably safer to stay away from the main road, Regina made her way back into the trees and went in search of Emma. She had been walking a short distance when she encountered a statue, a large one. With a heroic looking Charming and Snow, apparently they had defeated her on that spot. She couldn't help but chuckle, as if...

That's when she heard...singing. The voice was definitely female, this couldn't be Emma Regina was sure. Until she rounded the statue and saw with her own eyes Emma, dressed in a white attire very much looking like a princess, picking flowers while humming...hum-ming! Regina's jaw hit the floor, she was too busy taking in Emma's clothing to notice the look on Emma's face, a mixture of surprise and apprehension.

"What the hell happened to you?" Regina asked incredulously.

A startled Emma backed away from Regina. "You... You're the Evil Queen."

The former Queen realized she wasn't expecting Emma to have changed at all. She had somehow pictured the Emma she knew to be trapped inside a wish. But this was definitely not her Emma. The blonde kept backing away from her and was visibly alarmed. "You don't remember me?" Regina's voice sounded something between surprise and disappointment.

"I know exactly who you are. My parents banished you." Emma answered while shyly hiding behind a tree.

Regina wasn't sure what to make of this... Emma really believed she was the Evil Queen and that her parents had somehow banished her. That didn't make sense at all... maybe she could reason with the blonde, hoping she would come to her senses.

"Uh, no, they didn't." The thought was still hilarious to Regina, again she chuckled a little. "And, none of this is real. I'm your friend."

"You're no one's friend. My father said you were a liar." Emma replied, sounding nothing like the independent, no nonsense woman Regina knew. She sounded a bit childish, nevertheless the romantic notion of the situation wasn't lost on the brunette. Emma was acting like a lot of the princesses Regina had encountered in many a story she had read since moving to Storybrooke. An inexperienced, innocent woman encountered a stranger she shied away from because that was how proper ladies were to act. Although they were always curious and the stranger mostly ended up with the girl.

Regina's heart skipped a beat, why was she comparing their situation to a romantic one she had seen in movies? Emma was her best friend, not a love interest. Of course the blonde was beautiful, funny, smart, caring, a good listener and so much more but she would never consider someone like Regina as a suitable partner, would she?

She quickly focused on the situation at hand and tried to reason with the blonde some more. "No, it's not a lie. Where we're from... we actually share custody of a son." She shrugged, it sounded so natural to her.

But it clearly didn't to Emma, the look of utter confusion made that very clear. Regina sighed. "Okay, it's complicated but... the point is I risked my life coming here because you're the Savior... and your family needs you." The brunette tried a different tactic hoping this would juggle Emma's memory.

Regina noticed the small change in Emma's demeanor when she said 'Savior' the word got to the woman hiding behind the tree. But she didn't have time to dwell on it, she sensed something flying at her and instinctively ducked sending an arrow aimed at her into a nearby tree.

Snow and Charming were there, Regina faced them and was momentarily struck by their appearances. They looked regal enough but also 33 years older than their Storybrooke versions. Unconsciously she smiled at them but it wasn't returned, same as their daughter they didn't believe her either. Which was no real surprise to Regina because they weren't real, only Emma was.

She turned her attention back to Emma, clearly the blonde must realize this as well. "Emma, these... these people aren't real."

"Mom, Daddy, please help."

Emma Swan begging for help, that was something new! And very strange but Regina wasn't giving up yet. "No, they're... they're hallucinations that..." she clearly heard Snow and David raising their weapons at her, this could not be happening... Emma had to realize that this wasn't real. Regina struggled to find a better explanation still not backing down. "... a fake reality."

The Charmings were now definitely about to harm her if Emma didn't stop them, Regina tried to beg. Not something she did lightly, but this was Emma, she had to save her! "Emma, you _have to_ believe me!"

"Never!" The word was spoken with such determination Regina felt like she was slapped in the face, with a fist. She didn't think this was possible, Emma didn't believe her? Her best friend didn't believe her?! She chose these hallucinations over _her_...

"Come on, this isn't you! There has to be some part of you that knows that. Please!" Regina begged then scoffed. The brunette felt so hurt she didn't know what else to say or do, she just stood there dumbfounded. It almost took her too long to get herself to safety but she managed.

She magicked herself to the one place she felt safe enough to go to, she didn't even stop to think about whether that place still existed. Who knew where she might end up? Luckily for her, her old castle was still there. Clearly no one had been there for ages... It was decaying and filthy, her belongings were scattered around the room, broken. It weren't really her belongings she knew but still seeing what could have been if she hadn't succeeded wasn't the most pleasant of feelings.

Still Emma not believing her was way worse. Maybe she should have thought this through, but when it came to Emma and Emma's safety she didn't always use her brain. She often acted on impulse, same as the blonde. First act then think! Right about now she was regretting that decision. Why had she not considered Emma not becoming the Savior might have changed her. Emma being raised by her own parents, never knowing rejection, never being alone and all the other things young Emma had gone through... Of course it was only logical that she'd be a different person.

But then again Regina didn't really know where she would end up in the first place when wishing to be where Emma was. Honestly she thought she would've ended up somewhere in Boston or some other place where a still lost Emma was trying hard to find happiness, to find a home. Never meeting Henry and therefore never learning where to find Storybrooke and her family. Never meeting Regina, never breaking the curse.

Regina wandered around the place lost in thought, hoping to come up with a solution because simply talking to the blonde wasn't going to suffice. That's when she heard it, the laughter...

Rumplestiltskin!


	3. Someday

_**A/N: We're still inside 6x10. I think only one more installment before we move beyond the episode and the story can truly commence. Again thanks for all the support. Enjoy!**_

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It was a beautiful day outside, birds were singing, the sun was shining... It was cold but it was a pleasant kind of cold. The perfect atmosphere for a stroll through the woods Emma thought. Everyone was busy preparing for Henry's big day and she was a bit bored. She couldn't remember when she had been bored like this before. It didn't matter really, she would pick some flowers and afterwards help with decorations.

"Emma?" Her mother called after her.

"Yes, mom?" Emma smiled at her mother, always glad to see her. They were best friends, she could tell her mother everything.

"Where are you going, honey?"

"I'm going to pick some flowers, if that's okay with you?" Emma had been raised properly, always being cordial.

"Of course it's okay. I'll see you when you get back." Snow told her. Emma knew her mother only asked because she was still worried because of the dream. Turning around, smiling, she made her way outside.

The moment she entered the forest the mood moved her and she started humming one of her favorite songs carefully choosing which flowers were perfect enough to be picked. She loved flowers, the colors, the smells... what was not to love about flowers?

She was so lost in her trance she hadn't noticed the stranger on her path. Only when her name was said she realized she wasn't alone. The stranger startled Emma... a lot! For a million different reasons all at once.

For starters what was she wearing? Emma had never seen this kind of attire, least of all on a woman. If she hadn't spoken she might for a brief moment have been mistaken for a man. Very briefly of course because her features were very delicate.

The brunette clearly knew her name, knew her... She said "What the hell happened to you?" Like she was talking to a friend.

She even spoke in a strange way, sounding nothing like anyone Emma had ever encountered... well maybe she sounded a bit like Neal had used to sound. But he had visited a lot of different realms, thus it was only natural.

Then Emma looked a little closer at the stranger and realized she appeared familiar, like they had met before. Met once upon a dream to be more precise! She was looking at the Evil Queen in the flesh! Granted, she looked differently. Afraid of what she might do to the daughter of her vanquishers Emma started to back away. She had been taught never to engage with a stranger anyway...

"You... You're the Evil Queen." Emma uttered unsure.

The Evil Queen seemed hurt at Emma's words. The blonde knew she was a master manipulator however. The emotion could easily be fabricated in order to gain the blonde's trust. She seemed even more hurt that Emma didn't remember her but of course the princess did and she told her as much. "I know exactly who you are. My parents banished you."

Standing behind the tree Emma felt a lot safer, she didn't know whether it was the tree's doing or the fact that she somehow didn't really fear the Evil Queen as much as she had anticipated. Something about that woman was intriguing to say the least.

She was trying hard to convince Emma that nothing around her was real and that they were friends. Emma had never even seen the brunette in real life, how could they be friends? "You're no one's friend. My father said you were a liar."

The Queen wasn't making much sense Emma judged. But she had yet to say the strangest things of all... "No, it's not a lie. Where we're from... we actually share custody of a son."

Share custody of a son? That implied... that... she... they... Strange woman! Only couples shared custody of a son, didn't they? Was she trying to convince Emma that they were more than friends? Emma didn't know what to do or say. A thousand questions were running through her mind, a thousand images as well...

In reality it all happened really fast but to the princess time stood still for a moment. Nothing seemed to be happening at all. This stranger - beautiful stranger - she had only once seen in her dreams was implying that they had a child together. Wow, the Evil Queen was good, Emma thought. She had rendered Emma speechless with just a few sentences. Who knew what else she was capable of?

The unusual woman must have realized she wasn't making much sense because she tried to explain. "Okay, it's complicated but... the point is I risked my life coming here because you're the Savior... and your family needs you."

Risked her life? Savior? That word again... Her mother had told her all about how she was supposed to become the Savior but all of that was avoided when they'd succeeded in banishing Regina. Could it be a coincidence that she hadn't heard that word in years and now she had heard it twice in as many days? Once in her dreams and once from the lips of this fascinating woman. The word did something to Emma, she wasn't sure what exactly... Somehow it made her bolder, less fearful.

The person standing in front of her didn't seem threatening. Making a closer inspection Emma dared say she even looked friendly. This couldn't be right, could it? The blonde became a little frustrated because she was at a loss of what to do. She knew better that to trust the Evil Queen but the woman standing so close to her might resemble the Evil Queen in looks but she also appeared nothing like the woman Emma had been told about.

Thankfully her parents chose this moment to interfere. They threatened to harm her if she didn't back away. Regina, however, didn't! She was either incredibly brave or incredibly stupid. The way she said her parents' names sounded caring as well. Emma didn't understand. Should she believe this woman or not?

Emma begged her parents to help her out, not really the kind they had in mind but she could use any help. All the blonde had wanted was for them to tell her what to do, but clearly they had decided for her that the best way to deal with this woman was to banish her again or worse.

Regina faced Emma again, not caring that her parents were heavily armed and ready to do their worst. The princess quickly diverted her eyes, afraid that Regina might see what was really going on inside her.

Still, Regina was trying to convince her that none of this was real. Was that why the brunette was unafraid... she didn't believe they could harm her? Because Emma was sure they most definitely could.

"Emma, you _have to_ believe me!"

Have to? Emma didn't have to do anything! The Evil Queen thought she could decide what was best for her when her own parents undoubtedly had made it clear that this woman wasn't trustworthy. "Never!" Emma said and she meant it, the hurt on the brunette's features wasn't anticipated though.

She tried one last time to convince Emma. "Come on, this isn't you! There has to be some part of you that knows that. Please!" And the blonde had no choice but to divert her eyes yet again because the woman's words hit home.

Some part of her had wanted to go on an adventure maybe someday. Her dream had awakened something within her she didn't know was there to begin with. But Regina couldn't possibly know that. It had been a dream... of which she had only spoken with her parents. And they had told her that she didn't have to worry about a thing. Yet, the Evil Queen was there. Had her arrival something to do with the dream? Had her dream in whatever way conjured the Evil Queen back to their land?

Dreams did come true, didn't they? Emma was ashamed to think that maybe she was the cause for Regina's return and was glad when she heard the whoosh of her using magic to get away from them. Emma didn't dare to think that someone she cared about might end up being hurt because she had had a fantastical dream.

~~~oOo~~~

Back in the confines of the castle Snow and Charming looked worriedly at their still silent daughter. Emma smiled reassuringly at them or at least tried to but failed miserably. Her mother stepped closer to her and put a caring hand on her shoulder. "Is everything okay, sweetie?"

Her father chimed in. "Because we would understand... meeting Regina is always an ordeal."

"I'm fine, really." Emma told them honestly. She wasn't afraid, although meeting the former queen wasn't something she had ever expected to happen. Not for the first time since it had happened Emma was finding it hard to believe that the woman she had encountered would harm her or her family in any way.

Regina had been genuinely friendly, a little bit frustrated maybe because Emma didn't want to believe her but she hadn't hurt any of them. She hadn't even retaliated against her parents. Could it be that this woman was telling the truth? That she wasn't from this land, this reality? It wouldn't be the first time that someone from a different realm happened upon their realm.

Her silent contemplation wasn't convincing her parents judging by the worried looks they shared. Emma tried again "Are you sure that that woman really is the Evil Queen?"

"Emma? What are you.."

Her mother started to ask but Emma cut her off. "I mean, why didn't she retaliate against either of you? Why didn't she just kill me? She also said some strange things..." The blonde trailed off not really sure she should tell them about the sharing a son part and how it had affected her.

"I don't know, honey. Regina has always been rather erratic. What did she say?"

"She said that we were friends and that she had come here to save me... She said that I was the Savior where she was from and ..." Emma paused, gathering her thoughts. "...that none of this is real."

"Oh Emma, you remember I once told you that Regina was a compulsive liar, don't you?" Her father asked with a sympathetic expression, waiting for Emma to nod. When she did, he continued. "Well, she works in mysterious ways. She probably hoped you would go with her so she could use you to hurt us. That's all she ever wanted, to hurt us. Right before we banished her she vowed to make our lives miserable and I can't think of anything that would make us more miserable than she hurting you."

His words warmed Emma's heart, she was so lucky they had been successful. She just couldn't imagine a life without them. She hugged them both smiling widely. "I'm glad I didn't believe her."

"We as well, honey. Now let's use these beautiful flowers to decorate the hall." Snow said leading Emma to the crafts room.

~~~oOo~~~

Everyone was gathered in the gigantic ball room, eagerly awaiting the arrival of Prince Henry. Emma was anxious, but the good kind actually. Her son had become so grown-up. It seemed like only yesterday when she was giving birth to him, today he was ready to be knighted. She looked around the room to watch her friends and acquaintances and how they had also aged through the years.

Her mother mistook her anxiety for panic, she squeezed Emma's hand reassuringly and told her everything would turn out alright. Emma couldn't help but smile at her mother and how she always seemed to know what to say even if Emma wasn't really afraid. If she had been, her mother would have once again reassured her.

"Presenting his Royal Highness, Prince Henry!"

Trumpets were blown, doors were opened and in strolled Henry dressed in his finest armor. He shone brighter than Emma had ever seen him and her heart filled with pride. He was so mature, so confident and handsome. He kneeled down before them and Queen Snow was about to dub him Knight of the Realm when the doors flew open again, a collective gasp went through the room.

There stood the Evil Queen in all her glory demanding everyone's attention. She confidently walked over to them discarding two armed guards on her way. Stopping in front of them, before either one of her parents had time to do anything the Evil Queen froze them.

The Evil Queen was back! It had all been lies, the woman in the woods had tried to convince Emma with falsities. The blonde was visibly shaken, a part of her had been ready to believe that woman. A part of her _wanted_ to believe... Luckily her parents had been right, because Emma instinctively knew that if she were to encounter Regina again - the one she had met in the woods not this version - she would have talked to her again. She had been desperate to know what it all meant... why Regina had acted like they knew each other. Now she realized she had made a mistake in thinking the woman could be trusted.

"I vowed to destroy their happiness if it is the last thing I do." The Evil Queen declared watching Emma expectantly. The blonde had no clue what the Queen was expecting precisely. Should she beg? Regina kept staring intently at her and the more she did the more uncomfortable Emma felt.

The woman she had met in the woods had been forthcoming and sensible, maybe she would listen to reason? Emma did the only thing she could think of, she pleaded. "Please. Don't hurt my parents."

Regina had yet to break eye contact but she didn't seem in the least bit perturbed by Emma's emotional state. "Oh, but you see, hurting them is the point... unless you know of a hero who can stop me."

Emma noticed how she stressed the word 'hero' and looked if possible even more expectant. The only heroes the blonde knew were standing next to her, frozen. She had nothing to offer, why was this evil woman still expecting her to do anything? Emma suddenly realized that if she became this Savior maybe the world as she had known it might stop to exist. That was Regina's plan all along, wasn't it? She hadn't been able to curse anyone in the past thus she had found a new way to do it...

Emma wouldn't be fooled again, not twice by the same person. She was clearly still evil and Emma wasn't about to lose everything she knew. She couldn't give Regina the satisfaction, she simply refused to fight. Instead she kneeled down and begged for her parents' safety. Judging by the disappointed look on Regina's face she had made the right choice at least she hoped she had.

Emma glanced up at the brunette who was for a moment at a loss for words. Her actions had been very unforeseen, Emma was pleased. "Look for that hero... Princess." The Evil Queen said the word with much disdain before continuing. "And when you find one, you know where to find us."

Emma noticed how she didn't do anything else but utter the threat, she was still hoping Emma would take action against her. Emma had made the right choice by not fighting how else could one explain this pause, this expectancy Regina was displaying. Emma glanced challengingly at the Queen, still refusing to do anything. She wasn't going to be the one to hurt everyone by falling for Regina's trap.

It was clear on the brunette's features that she knew Emma wasn't going to do anything. With a flick of her hand all three of them disappeared and Emma stood up. Panicked gasps went through the crowd, everyone was looking around as if the King and Queen would somehow magically appear somewhere among them.

"Mom, what do we do?"

Henry's voice made Emma turn around and focus her attention on him. He looked worriedly at her, almost afraid. But Emma strangely felt rather calm, the fact that Regina was waiting for her to take action made her realize she still had a chance to save her parents. The Queen needed the blonde in some way. And if Emma simply refused to be the hero everything would turn out fine.

If Regina had really wanted to kill or hurt her parents she could have done so twice already but she hadn't. That meant that maybe she didn't truly want to hurt them and there was still a chance to save them without resorting to violence.

Emma's decision was made, she was going to save her parents just not in the way Regina wanted her to. She gave Henry a confident look and said with as much conviction. "Don't worry, kid. I've got this."


	4. Saving the Savior

A grim looking Snow and David were sitting on the sofa while Regina was impatiently pacing up and down the room hoping Emma would soon find her and fight her for her parents. She hadn't been that long in this realm but she was already detesting the place. Everyone was so self-righteous it was sickening. Also Regina didn't like to play the Evil Queen... She was still afraid that giving into darkness even if it was play pretend would bring out the worst in her.

On the one hand separating the Evil Queen from herself should ensure that going dark wasn't an option anymore but Regina knew better. She might have taken the darkness literally out, nevertheless the darkness was as much a part of her than the light.

"Whatever you're planning it won't work. We'll defeat you, Regina. We always..."

Regina rolled her eyes and cut David off. "Defeat me. I know. I know. That's what I'm counting on."

She turned around only to come face to face with a confident looking Emma, Regina was pleased. Finally, this would soon seem like a bad dream. "Don't worry. She's not going to hurt you. It's going to be okay."

"I knew you'd find the hero in you." Regina was unable to hide the content smirk on her face and had to remind herself that she was playing a different role. Conjuring a fireball in her hand, Evil Queen mask firmly back in place she added. "Now, let's get this over with."

Upon seeing the fireball Emma swallowed faintly but didn't deter from her plan of saving her parents. She strutted confidently closer towards Regina who also got closer to her. Regina saw a small box in the blonde's hands hoping eagerly that she had brought some kind of weapon to defeat her.

Emma kneeled down while simultaneously opening the box, revealing a key. "The key to our kingdom, which is now yours, Your Majesty. We surrender."

Regina's eyes and ears must be deceiving her, she did not just hear Emma Swan surrendering because that would never happen... But looking at the kneeling blonde she knew she had heard exactly that. This was absurd! There had been a time when Regina had wanted nothing more than the Savior to just surrender and disappear but now that she needed her to fight, she wouldn't.

Regina wondered whose wish had been granted precisely because this could have been her wish years ago, except for the being defeated part. When the Evil Queen and she were still the same person nothing would've made her happier than a surrendering Savior. "Seriously?" The word left Regina's lips but it meant so much more than a question.

It was a statement of her disbelieve. A statement of her loss as well because this version of Emma was far from the one she loved. The blonde however was oblivious to everything and answered earnestly. "Anything to protect my parents."

Emma looked at Regina and hoped she would just accept her surrender and release her parents. The brunette put out the fireball, grabbed the key and threw it away stating she didn't want any of it. Emma was confused, Regina's voice sounded soft and upset at the same time.

Regina groaned, not believing that Emma was still not remembering who she was. "I just want you to remember who you are and get you back to Storybrooke."

Emma's confusion only increased, the brunette knew what she'd dreamt? "How do you know of my dreams?"

Regina's frustration only increased telling Emma that _this_ was the dream. "... and now I have to wake you up."

Emma's breath hitched and she swallowed audibly this time. She could think of only one way in which Regina was going to wake her up. That tale was as old as time, she had heard it countless times... the tale of how her father had awoken her mother when she was under a sleeping curse. How Philip had awoken Aurora when she was under a sleeping curse. Was Regina about to kiss her?

She blinked a couple of times. There were worse faiths than being kissed by Regina weren't there. But if her kiss did wake her than it would mean the Queen was her True Love. Could that be right? Well, Regina had said they were friends and shared custody of a son and she knew what was in Emma's dreams therefore ...she could be.

Regina watched Emma's reaction to what she had said, she saw the corners of Emma's mouth twitch ever so slightly wondering what the blonde was thinking. She didn't react other than that so Regina decided to do something drastic. She turned back to Snow and David and ripped out their hearts.

Regina didn't like what she was doing but she had no choice, surely Emma would fight her now her parents' lives were really in danger. She squeezed their hearts a little to show she was serious but all the blonde did was fall to her knees sobbing. Sob-bing! Pleading!

Emma couldn't believe what was going on instead of being kissed by the enigmatic Queen she was watching her clutching her parents' hearts. She was going to kill them unless Emma stopped her. But how? Emma couldn't imagine life without them, the pain she felt simply thinking about losing them crippled her. She was on her knees, weeping uncontrollably. There was nothing she could do.

The fact that Emma refused to do anything to defend her parents aggravated Regina beyond words. If this didn't work, nothing would she realized disheartened. She had tried to reason, to threaten ... nothing was working. Maybe she could try to enrage Emma, that was the only thing left. She squeezed harder, hating every minute of it, only holding on to the fact that none of this was real.

"Oh, come on, _Miss_ _Swan_!" Regina knew how Emma hated being called Miss Swan by her. Not since they had become friends, even when Emma was the Dark One she detested the words. This would surely trigger something within her. "You don't want their blood on your hands, do you?"

But nothing happened... Emma was still crying instead of fighting. Regina realized she had lost her. The Evil Queen - the real one - had won and without even realizing it her anger at her dark half and her loss made her squeeze one final time. The hearts in her hands turned to dust and Regina had to do everything in her power not to break down.

Knees feeling weak she almost followed Emma to the floor, almost... She steadied herself and tried to make sense of the situation. Why hadn't Emma fought her? What was blocking her?

Emma watched her deceased parents and cried harder. Tears, two and three at the time, left her eyes. Her heart was aching beyond anything she had ever felt before. She watched Regina pacing up and down muttering something to herself but no words reached her until...

"She may not have fought, but I will." She turned towards an enraged Henry. "You murdered my grandparents, and for that, you _will_ pay!"

Emma immediately stood up, she wasn't ready to lose her son as well. He had to realize how dangerous Regina was. How very capable of murder. She couldn't let him get hurt too. Henry on the other hand wasn't paying attention to his mother's words, he was furious, he was in pain and the only thing he could think of was destroying the reason for his pain. Destroying the Evil Queen.

Emma watched how Regina told him that she wouldn't hurt him. She had just killed Emma's parents but she wasn't going to hurt Henry, her son? Regina just closed her eyes and... waited? She was sacrificing herself Emma realized with a start. She might not have been ready to lose her parents but the thought of losing Regina was too much. Also the thought of Henry becoming everything she never wanted him to be, that wasn't her wish that was... the Evil Queen's wish.

Regina gone and her son evil! Just in time she stopped Henry by magically freezing him and the sword he had thrown at Regina. Momentarily Emma was baffled at how or what had happened but it all made sense and suddenly Emma knew who she was.

"Emma?" Regina sounded surprised. "You saved me."

Regina's heart swelled at the notion. Emma had just saved her! She hadn't been able to save her parents but she had saved _her_.

Emma watched the delighted expression on her friend's face while numerous flashes of her real memories came back to her. The brunette played a prominent role in most of them. Then she realized her cheeks were damp with tears and she quickly wiped them away before replying only a tad bit self-conscious. "Yeah, well, you came to this crazy land to save me, so it's only fair, right?"

Regina for some reason sounded uncertain, she really hoped her Emma was back but she had to make sure. "You...remember?"

"Yeah, I remember." Emma simply replied. She moved a little closer to the frozen Henry, still a bit unnerved by what she had experienced. _Princess_ Emma mockingly sounded in her head.

She watched her deceased 'parents' which was still rather unsettling. "Are they...?" She couldn't even bring herself to finish the sentence.

Regina sensing the blonde's discomfort quickly interjected. "Oh, they're not real. I didn't actually kill anyone." When she heard her own words she briefly wondered who she was trying to convince more, Emma or herself?

Emma smiled at Regina setting her mind at ease. "Yeah, I know. You just needed to wake me." _You could have just kissed me_ , she thought. "Thank you."

Regina's heart fluttered with happiness and love, she knew Emma would understand. It felt so good to be appreciated, a smile spread across her face and she shyly looked away before locking eyes with the blonde.

"Although... that was very dark." And again Emma had the urge to tell Regina she could have just kissed her, to divert both their attention from the situation she quickly grasped the sword and said. "Come on. Let's go stop the real Evil Queen."

~~~oOo~~~

They were strolling on the beach where Regina was supposed to rendezvous with the fake Rumple. Emma was still coming to terms with what she had been through. Her emotions were ransacking through her, she still felt the devastation at losing her fake parents but also felt anger towards the Evil Queen, whose wish had brought her here.

Never becoming the Savior had indeed been her desire... but now that she had tasted the life she could have had she was glad it was over. This just wasn't her. She was trying to explain her feelings to Regina but she had some difficulties. "The person I was here just wasn't me. The fighting and the pain... it's... it's what makes me me. I'm good with that." Emma said indicating the sword she was holding. "Even if it means my end."

Emma scoffed before adding. "Cause, you know, that other person kind of sucked."

Regina agreed but couldn't help to tease the blonde a little for everything she had been put through. "Yeah. And singing Princess Emma isn't my favorite model."

Emma blushed and shyly looked away. "I didn't sing..." Regina gave her a funny look. "... that you saw." Upon remembering exactly which song she had been humming her cheeks colored a bit deeper.

Regina chuckled at Emma's discomfort and Emma couldn't help but smile. She liked this playful side of Regina maybe a little too much. If she didn't know better she might think the brunette was mildly flirting with her.

"Now let's go home." Regina said.

Home Emma thought. Strangely enough this place still felt like home for a small part of her, she hoped the curse would soon lift and she wouldn't have to remember this alternative life. Or was this how most residents of Storybrooke felt after Regina's curse. Apart from Emma and Henry they all had lived two separate lives and remembered both. Nevertheless the biggest part of her wanted to get out of here, to get home to Henry and her parents.

And Hook! Emma suddenly remembered that she was living together with him, she felt guilty because she hadn't thought of him, not once. Until now. Luckily Regina distracted her. "Where is he?"

"Who?" Emma asked tentatively.

Emma didn't believe her ears when Regina told her of the deal she'd made with the fake Rumple and couldn't help but scold her. "What if he's, like, razing villages or something?"

Regina was rather glad the blonde was acting like herself again, even if she was being scolded but she didn't get a chance to set Emma's mind at ease before Rumple announced his presence and true to his word he handed Regina the bean he had promised her in his special impish style of course.

Neither Emma nor Regina wanted to dwell any longer, all they wanted was to go home. Regina threw the bean on the ground and both women watched the portal opening. Afraid of losing the blonde again Regina reached out for Emma's hand but obviously the blonde had similar thoughts because their hands met halfway. Holding on tight they patiently waited until the portal was fully opened when suddenly both had to duck because someone was aiming arrows at them...

A familiar sounding male voice got their attention and they looked at the man standing a few feet away from them. "Not another step, ladies." A similar expression of utter shock on both their faces.

"No, it can't be." Regina stood up and starting walking towards Hood. Everything else ceased to exist. She was looking at a very much alive Robin, standing there...not that far away from her. "Robin?"

Emma saw Regina's reaction and instantly understood how shocked the brunette must be feeling. It hadn't been that long ago that she herself had experienced the return of a deceased loved one. But this Hood wasn't real, Regina had said so herself, it was a fake reality. She tried and tried to get Regina to realize this but she wasn't successful.

The more time passed the more Regina moved in Robin's direction, not hearing Emma's reasoning, not caring the portal was about to close if they didn't jump into it. Her heart ached and yet it felt so good to see him... She was at a loss.

"Let's go! Off with the jewelry!" He said and Regina might be oblivious, yet Emma noticed this wasn't their Robin.

She looked at the portal that was already starting to close and contemplated what to do. She had to get through to Regina. "Remember what you said. He's not real." But Regina wasn't hearing any of it. Emma tried one last time. "He's not real!" They had to go now! She considered jumping but the thought sounded ridiculous, she wasn't going to leave the woman who had risked everything to save her...

They really had to go! There wasn't much time left. With great disquiet Emma witnessed Regina and Hood moving closer to each other. She couldn't see the brunette's expression but Hood had still to lower his weapon. She feared for Regina's safety and sanity because this couldn't be easy for her.

"Regina!" Emma yelled but it was too late, the portal closed and they were ... trapped.


	5. Light & Dark

_**A/N: Thank you all for the continued support, it means a lot! I hope you're all having a wonderful time of the year :-). Here is the next chapter! Enjoy!**_

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Regina smiled at the man now standing at arm's length, tears welling in her eyes. Her heart beating a little bit faster. He was there, Robin was there. The love she'd felt for the man came rushing back. She couldn't believe what was going on. How was this possible?

Robin was also confused, this woman knew his name and was staring at him as if they knew each other on an intimate level, yet he didn't believe he had ever met her. Even more puzzling was the fact that he had a quiver firmly aimed at her and she didn't in the least seemed threatened by it. He repeated again his business "Ladies, I don't think you understand... This is a robbery."

Emma moved closer to Regina and tentatively put a hand on her shoulder breaking whatever trance she was in. Regina slowly turned towards the blonde. Emma gave her a sympathetic smile and reassuringly squeezed her shoulder telling her without words that she understood. Upon seeing Emma's expression the brunette realized what they were doing there and where they were.

The portal! She quickly glanced behind her but of course it was no longer there that was when she realized what was going on. "I.. I'm sorry, Emma."

"It's okay." Emma felt the need to reassure her verbally as well because it looked like the normally strong woman beside her was slowly breaking down.

Robin watched the women with trepidation, they acted like he was not even there. He had never met anyone like them before. He coughed to gain their attention but it didn't work at first. He had to cough again, louder before the women staring into each other's eyes finally acknowledged him.

Because Regina was still at a loss for words, Emma tried to explain. "Sorry, she is not from around here. What do you want?" She sounded a lot more defensive than she had anticipated.

"What I want? Are you both a little slow? I already told you... twice. This is a robbery." Robin deliberately spelled the last word out.

"You are robbing us? Why?" Regina had clearly regained the use of her vocal cords, shocking Emma and Robin equally.

"Because that is what I do." Robin stated matter-of-factly, really starting to believe he was dealing with mentally challenged individuals, so he added "It's kind of my profession."

Emma raised an eyebrow at him and asked suspiciously, "To give to the poor, right?"

"What? That's ridiculous! I steal to provide for me and my people yes! And because it's entertaining." He laughed.

An idea struck Emma. "Do you realize who I am?"

"Should I?" He asked haughtily.

"I'm Princess Emma." _Queen Emma_ the blonde suddenly realized but wasn't ready to explain that yet.

"Okay, Princess Emma, prove it." Robin had never been a gullible person and he wasn't going to start today.

Emma realized they were in trouble, she had no means of convincing him. Her parents were dead which was their fault and Prince Henry wasn't going to be of much help either. They had just left not really considering any of the consequences as they were not supposed to be there any longer.

Regina was watching their interaction, slowly realizing they - no she - had made a big mistake. First of all this was not the Robin she had known and secondly she was now yet again a murderer. "Where are you from if you don't know that?"

"Well, I'm not from around here. We travel a lot and don't really submit to any crown. So excuse me if I don't really believe you." He explained.

"I'm not from around here either." Regina decided to not include Emma because that would only increase the man's suspicion. "That is really Princess Emma. I needed her to come to my world because she needs to save my family. You see, she is also the Savior."

"Go on." He might still be doubtful but this sounded too unlikely to be fabricated on the spot.

"In my reality there are different version of the people living here. Even of you." Regina paused briefly. "We... you and I were very much in love."

He squinted his eyes at Regina, not really understanding what she was telling him. "I... I have a difficult time believing any of this. However..." Both Emma and Regina looked at him optimistically. "I'm willing to consider what you are telling me _if_ ... you are willing to come with me quietly."

Emma and Regina looked at each other and shrugged, it didn't really sound like the best plan but since they didn't have anything better they agreed.

~~~oOo~~~

Upon entering Robin's camp both women were placed in separate holdings. Robin didn't want to give them the opportunity to concoct a plan in his absence. What he didn't know was that both women were able to use magic, however they'd decided not to use it unless absolutely necessary.

Still not trusting them, his plan was to question them separately and see if he was able to find some proof that he was indeed holding royalty. He had seen a lot of reaction going through the camp when he escorted both women, he was unsure of what it all meant. What's more, he also hadn't decided if he was going to ask ransom or just set her free. He decided to go to Emma's cell first.

"Princess Emma, I'm going to ask you some questions. I hope you'll answer them honestly." He announced his presence to the blonde woman standing defiantly in her cell.

Emma didn't answer him, she just nodded and waited. She really hated being separated from Regina, definitely since the brunette was in a strange place and because Emma knew she wasn't the most patient person and hoped she wouldn't do anything else she might regret. Also, Emma admitted to herself, she was worried about Regina and what she was going through right now. She had really hoped to comfort her.

Robin deliberately waited a couple of moments before asking his first question, hoping to unnerve the blonde. She raised an impatient eyebrow at him not in the least impressed, rather annoyed.

"So it seems you were telling me the truth about being a princess... some people around camp recognized you." He began but Emma still didn't react other than a shrug. "What can you tell me about Regina?"

Emma rolled her eyes at him. "That's a very open question is it not? I can literally tell you anything I like and you'll have no way of verifying any of it..."

"True, but you gave me your word and I'm willing to trust you." Robin lied.

"Well, doesn't Regina look in the least bit familiar to you? Did no one around camp recognize her?" Emma asked.

Robin gave her a quizzical look, some people had indeed hinted that the brunette resembled the Evil Queen. Robin found it strange that a woman who was referred to as Evil hadn't made any attempt to free herself or use violence of any kind. She had willingly come to camp and had willingly entered the small cell. He hoped Emma could clarify that for him.

"Judging by your silence I'm going to assume they did." Emma answered her own question before Robin had the chance. She also wasn't the most patient person and seeing the surprised expression on the man's face, she decided to help him out. "They are wrong anyway... She truly is not from this realm, she came here to get me because she needs my help. We had just opened a portal when you decided to rob us..."

When she saw the apologetic expression on his face it was Emma's turn to be surprised because earlier he'd acted all arrogant about stealing from them. Robin opened and closed his mouth a couple of times unsure of how to proceed, when he finally wrapped his mind around something he asked "What does she need your help with?"

Emma silently contemplated how much she could explain without sounding like a madwoman. She filled him in about "Regina's realm" and the "evil" that needed to be defeated there without giving too many details.

Meanwhile on the other side of Robin's camp Regina was fuming in her cell. She hated being separated from Emma, she really hoped everything was alright with her. She could really use her friend to try to figure out how to get away from this place and more importantly how to get home now they had lost the bean. Her hands started to twitch and she shook them in calming manner. Ever since killing the fake Charmings and meeting fake Robin the brunette felt angrier by the minute.

Why hadn't she just used magic to get out of this predicament? Why hadn't Emma? Together they were almost invincible so what had stopped them? Probably the blonde's heroic sense. Regina groaned and sparks flew from her fingertips. She gripped the bars and started tugging them, hard. She knew it wouldn't do much but she was willing to do anything to help her refrain from using magic. Her frustrations were slowly getting the better of her! Why wasn't Emma with her?! She really could use her, even if it was just to vent her annoyance.

After tugging with all her might until her arms hurt the brunette had calmed down enough to use some common sense. She inhaled deeply and slowly exhaled three times in a row, calming down even more. Mentally she traveled back to the beach and the moment before seeing Robin. She remembered looking at the arrows and immediately recognizing them. It felt strange to explain but she just knew they were Robin's. They had been so close to getting home, why did he have to show up?

He was probably the last person she had expected to come across in this strange land. Not to mention the fact that he hadn't aged at all when all other people living here had. But trying to apply logic to this wish-realm was probably foolish because nothing about it was rational. Still, Regina wondered why this had been. She also wondered if there was still a version of the Evil Queen somewhere around. She might have been banished but was she banished to a different land or to a different realm?

The calm she had felt moments earlier was disappearing rapidly again. She also wondered how many time was passing in the real world while they were here. She really hoped it was in sync. They hadn't been to many realms where time moved differently so she suspected this time it wasn't like that either.

When she was about to start tugging on the bars again she heard someone enter. She looked up to meet Robin's eyes, it still shocked her. They looked right through her, she smiled reluctantly but he didn't return it either. "Regina," he paused "I've had an interesting talk with Emma."

"Did you now..." Regina smirked before continuing. "Are you ready to let us go then?"

"Not entirely yet. First I want to talk to you. Can you tell me what you were doing on the beach?" He asked earnestly.

She groaned again. "This is a waste of time! I already told you and I'm sure Emma did as well. But if you really have to know, I came here to get Emma because I need her."

"Are you and Emma an item?" His question startled Regina and she blushed profusely.

"Wha.. What?! Where did you get that idea?"

"I don't know... You are both concerned about each other, you were dressed compatibly, she was ready to abandon everything to save you, ... How would you describe your relationship then?" he asked sincerely.

Regina was momentarily speechless, he had a point. Why would a complete stranger follow her to some unknown land to save her... She didn't really know how to answer that question without making things even more complicated. She also had no intention of revealing their white lie. "I... We hardly know each other, we just met." She tried.

"Well, it could have been love at first sight..." Robin smiled.

"That's true..." Regina had no explanations to defy such logic. "I had a vision or premonition of a woman who was going to save us. I found a way to get here and told her what I wanted from her. At first she wasn't very compliant but I managed to convince her and she was willing to follow me."

Robin sized her up, remaining silent. It was clear he was deciding something. Regina opted to wait until he made up his mind because she didn't know what else to tell him.

"Well, you pretty much told me the same as Princess Emma did so you're probably telling me the truth." He said, making Regina smile widely. She was glad this was almost over. "I'm not going to let you out yet, I still have to confirm some things but I will bring the blonde in here to keep you company." Robin smirked at her.

"Can I ask you something?" Regina asked quickly before he exited. He only nodded and slowly turned around to face her again. "What happened to you?"

"What do you mean?" He looked genuinely confused.

"I mean... you seem like a warm person but somehow you portray yourself as this.. hard man. It makes me think something happened to you..."

"You speak like we know each other... but trust me we don't. I'm not a warm person, I am cold and hard because that's all I know."

His answer was like a slap in the face for Regina, she hoped he would somehow explain. She had noticed - not right away - but shortly after meeting this man that he was not the same man as the one she once knew and loved. If she only knew why... except for Emma most people hadn't changed that much in this realm, had they? Or had she just not spent enough time with them or cared enough about them to notice. She solemnly smiled at him, which he didn't return. He didn't even acknowledge Regina's pain, he just left her and returned a little later with Emma at his side.

Emma immediately noticed that something was wrong, she hurried towards Regina and placed a comforting hand on the brunette's arm. "What happened?" she asked, her voice laced with concern.

Regina looked up into anxious emerald eyes and had to use every shred of willpower not to break down then and there. But she wasn't going to do that in front of the man that had caused this feelings inside her. It felt like her heart was breaking all over again and suddenly she was filled with anger. She felt it surge through her like she hadn't in years. She wanted to break something, she wanted to ... kill and destroy.

Although Regina wasn't looking directly at her anymore, Emma saw the shift in the older woman. She noticed that something was going on inside her and it wasn't good. She placed her finger under the brunette's chin and gently forced her to look at her again. It took Regina a moment but their eyes locked, both women staring intently at each other. The anger surging through Regina was slowly but steadily replaced by another feeling entirely, a warm and fuzzy feeling. Love!

Regina's breath hitched but neither woman acknowledged this. Robin on the other hand did, he coughed to get their attention. "You sure nothing's going on between you two?" He asked incredulously.

They looked away quickly, both their cheeks a little redder than they normally were. He laughed and left them without another word. Emma looked back at Regina, still concerned as to what was going on with her so she asked again "What happened?"

"I don't know... How did you do that?" Regina had misinterpreted Emma's question.

Emma's brow creased in confusion "Um... what? I didn't do anything... You were looking very distraught so I wanted to know what had happened?" she clarified.

Regina's cheeks reddened a little more and she quickly tried to recover from her mistake. "Oh, right... um... he is _not_ the same Robin. It hurt."

Emma smiled in understanding. "I know and I'm sorry, that must suck?"

"It does." Regina didn't immediately continue, unsure if telling the blonde everything was her best option. She looked at a very concerned looking Emma standing so close to her and knew the decision was already made. She said "It made me very angry. I don't know what's going on, but we need to get away from here and fast."

Emma raised an eyebrow at Regina. "You are not going dark, 'Gina" She uttered in absolute determination.

Regina, although still in doubt, couldn't help but smile at the blonde again. Emma had this way of always knowing what she needed even if she didn't. Emma saw the doubt remaining in the brunette's eyes and grabbed her gently by the shoulders, gazing intently at her again.

"Did you feel that?" she asked.

Regina wasn't sure what Emma was referring to exactly but she was feeling something at this moment. The younger women's body close to hers, two strong hands holding her, every shred of doubt gradually being drained from her... She swallowed and her gaze slowly traveled over Emma's face landing swiftly on the blonde's pale lips before traveling back towards her intense gaze.

Emma's stomach fluttered pleasantly, a jolt of electricity rushing through her entire being. The feeling was so strong and unruly she was unable to contain it. Sparks flew from her fingers, shocking Regina softly but enough to make them break contact.

Both women had felt it and there was no way they could deny it. Something was going on, something had been going on for a couple of years now. Still, they refused to bring it up. They looked at each other apologetically before quickly looking away, trying to find something to take their minds of their rampant feelings.

Emma was the first to speak, acting as if nothing had happened at all. "Earlier when you were mad, when I touched you and looked at you. Did you feel that?"

"Yes." Regina uttered huskily.

"That was love, Regina. No way your evil side is able to feel anything even remotely close to love... that means you are not going dark. Not anymore, not as long as I'm around." Emma smiled at Regina, who returned it wholeheartedly.

Emma was right, Regina realized... She might not be able to tell how the blonde had managed to do what she had done but it had worked. There was love inside her, a lot of it... Maybe it was enough to cease her from going dark. She started to laugh and the gesture startled Emma.

"You were right, you know?" Regina said but didn't give Emma the chance to question her. "I should have just kissed you to wake you."

~~~oOo~~~

Inside the Evil Queen's palace the spell that froze Henry wore off. He looked around and frantically searched for his mother but she was gone. He looked back at his deceased grandparents and swallowed around the lump in his throat. That was when he noticed the Evil Queen was gone as well. He just knew she had taken his mom. He was not going to stand by and let her take away his entire family! He hadn't come to the palace by himself, he quickly made his way outside where a small army was waiting for him.

Henry informed them of what had happened and announced "Let's get my mother back!"

He was going to destroy the Evil Queen if it was the last thing he did!

* * *

 _ **Is alternate Henry (going) dark? Good question... Would you like that? Tell me ;-)**_


	6. Caught

_**A/N: Best of wishes to all of you! Let's hope 2017 becomes the year SwanQueen is Endgame... if not, well then I hope we will be blessed with more beautifully written fanfics ;-).**_

 _ **Enjoy!**_

* * *

Emma blinked a couple of times wondering whether she had really heard those words or imagined them. Her mouth went dry and she tried to swallow. She was at a loss, she didn't know what to do or say. She didn't know what Regina expected her to do either. More than anything she wondered how the brunette had known what had been on her mind.

"Hh-How...?" the blonde began.

Regina just smirked and bit her lip playfully. "Well, you should try harder to contain those thoughts of yours."

Emma was none the wiser, did Regina have telepathic powers? Or had her reaction to the words 'wake you up' been strong enough to be obvious.

Regina chuckled, "Do you realize how cute you look when you're confused?" She wasn't sure where this playfulness was coming from but she liked it. She was watching the blonde standing there with that dumbfounded look on her face, clearly struggling with how Regina had known. What Emma didn't realize was that she had said those words out loud. Regina had chosen not to react to them earlier because she had been a little bit shocked by the blonde's quiet declaration.

Both women had yet to move, they were still standing rather close to each other, heat radiating from their bodies. Emma was frantically searching Regina's eyes for some form of explanation but the brunette was just smirking at her. Emma's eyes landed on Regina's plump lips and her breath hitched. Did Regina want her to kiss her? Or was she just playing with her?

Regina's eyes had followed Emma's gaze, she unconsciously wetted her lips and wondered whether the blonde was going to close the distance. Did Emma really want this? Eyes travelled upwards again and they gazed at each other, cheeks flushed, chests rising and falling with every labored breath they took, hearts beating just a little too fast.

Instinctively they inched closer, breaths mingling, Emma could almost taste Regina. Almost feel those plump lips on hers. Robin, however, chose this moment to interrupt them, "Well, ladies, I have some bad news."

They jumped apart trying to act as inconspicuously as they could. Emma silently cursed Robin's impeccable timing yet again! Why couldn't he just give them a break? She was beginning to think the Evil Queen had gone to extreme lengths to create a world in which Emma would be miserable. She rolled her eyes and glared at the infuriating man.

"What's wrong now?" she asked none too friendly.

"You neglected to tell me she is wanted for murder and treason. Care to explain?" he asked, gesturing towards Regina but directing his words to Emma.

Emma and Regina looked at each other remaining silent, they had screwed up royally it seemed. Neither women knew how or where to begin their explanation. "We can explain but it's complicated," Emma tried.

"Then _uncomplicate_ it for me." Robin rolled his eyes, they weren't making it easy for him to trust them, on the contrary. He was beginning to think they really didn't care what happened to them. Very strange women indeed.

Before anyone could say anything the sound of a commotion somewhere outside could be heard. Robin took a minute to decide what he was going to do but he really had no choice. If they stayed there he put everyone in danger and he wasn't willing to sacrifice his people for these strangers. "Okay, you can explain later. Now we have to go." He unlocked their cell, "Follow me!"

Emma and Regina didn't need to be told a second time, they swiftly followed Robin. Or at least Emma tried because the dress she was wearing wasn't very convenient. Regina instantly sensed the blonde's discomfort and quickly changed Emma's attire with a wave of her hand.

The blonde looked down her body and saw she was wearing her savior outfit, the one she wore in the alternate reality created by Rumple and the Author a while ago. Eyebrow raised she looked questioningly at Regina who only shrugged before following Robin, Emma had no choice but to tag along.

At the doorway Robin stopped and peeked outside, he saw some guards looking through several tents but no one was paying attention to the holding cells they were in. He quickly slipped outside, crouching as he went. Emma and Regina followed his lead. He stopped behind a tent when he heard voices nearby. Two guards were interrogating a frightened child, threatening to hit him if he didn't help them. Regina's blood boiled when she saw this and with another wave of her hand both their throats contracted cutting off their airway. They fell to the ground unconscious and the boy ran for his life.

They made it to the next tent but the voice that was heard this time made both women stop in their tracks. With shocked expressions they bore witness to the scene unfolding before them. A very angry-looking Henry was pacing in front of a small group of frightened onlookers, his golden cloak waving behind him. He stopped his pacing and acknowledged the audience. "The Evil Queen has struck again. She has killed your benevolent Queen and King, my grandparents and abducted your kind Princess, my dear mother - so she can try to ascend the throne herself. Information leading to her capture will be richly rewarded."

No one moved, no one dared to look at him. Afraid that even the smallest reaction on their faces might set him off. He grabbed a frail looking man by the collar and shouted furiously, "If I find out that any of you have been hiding the Evil Queen from me, I will come back and kill you all! Do I make myself clear?"

Reactions were still not very forthcoming, a couple of brave villagers quickly nodded their heads in understanding, secretly hoping Prince Henry would just leave and let them live. They had nothing to do with the murder of his grandparents or the abduction of his mother. Although most of them doubted that Princess Emma had been abducted by the Evil Queen, from what they had seen - which was not much because of Robin's guarded manner - the Evil Queen and Emma looked friendly towards one another and nonviolent in any way.

Robin tugged on Regina's arm to get them to move. Reluctantly the trio made their way to the edge of the forest. Robin quickly glanced back at his camp contemplating on whether to help them get away or helping his own people. Emma noticed this and decided to help him out, "Look, you don't have to help us if you don't want to. We understand."

"No, it's..." he shook his head and said, "I'll help you. I know these woods like the back of my hand."

He handed Emma a quiver of arrows and bow, who accepted them gratefully. Then he showed them the quickest way through the woods. Strangely enough although Emma remembered most of the woods this was an area she wasn't familiar with. She'd liked to take long strolls through the woods but never ventured too far from home, which was also rather strange because she couldn't remember ever being in real danger. Nothing had ever happened to make her want to stay close at home, yet that was how it had been. Probably another side effect from the real Evil Queen's wish, since all those memories were fake anyway. It didn't really matter how much of the forest she had seen, Emma gathered.

When they were far enough away from Robin's camp he showed them an abandoned cabin he had once used to stay in when he was out hunting late and it had been too dark to go home. He knew from experience no one ever came this far in the woods. Also, there wasn't a real road leading up to it which meant horses couldn't get there, making it all the less likely Henry and his guards would come this way.

He said goodbye after showing them the provisions that were still present and where all the hunting equipment was. Regina thanked him even though she could just use magic if need be. She wasn't averse to old school hunting of course but they would never really die from hunger or anything. She would also be able to shield them from Henry or anyone if they just happened to come there. Robin also handed the sword, Emma had been holding when he'd captured them, to Regina. Pleased that both women were set Robin left them, hoping that Prince Henry hadn't obliterated his camp by the time he got back.

Finally alone Regina made her way over to the cabin with the blonde inside. She really wanted to talk to her about what had almost happened between them and also about this version of their son. Because if seeing him terrorize those poor villagers had had the same effect on Emma than on her she knew the blonde wasn't feeling too well.

Regina made her way inside and saw Emma desperately rearranging the hunting equipment and other things she encountered, just to keep herself busy the brunette knew. "Can we talk?"

"What about?" Emma replied without looking at Regina, she just went about her business as if nothing had happened.

The older woman feared Emma would be her closed off self after everything that had went down but some part of her still hoped she'd wanted to talk about it. "Well, about everything... really." Regina said solemnly.

The blonde stopped her actions for about one nanosecond raising Regina's hopes but they quickly deflated when she saw Emma's walls come up once more. She sighed heavily and walked over to the blonde grabbing her by the shoulders and spinning her around forcing her to stop what she was doing and look at her. "Haven't we been through enough for you to act this indifferent all of a sudden?" Although it was posed as a question, it didn't sound like one thus Emma didn't bother to answer.

"Emma, please," Regina begged, frantically searching Emma's eyes for any form of reaction or recognition. "Maybe you can start by telling me how you feel."

"I feel fine, Regina." Emma's jaded tone hurt, Regina winced and dropped her hands. This Emma reminded her of the one she had been when she had just arrived in Storybrooke. The hurt, reclusive orphan mad at the world and too afraid of being hurt again to let anyone in. Emma hadn't been that person for years and Regina couldn't figure out what had brought this on.

Afraid of the consequences but still feeling she needed to do something, she pushed one more time. "Are you honestly going to tell me you feel fine after seeing your son act the way he did?"

"He's not my son!" Emma snapped, fire burning in her eyes.

Regina was pleased and dejected at the same time. She had gotten a reaction out of the blonde but she was also afraid she had pushed a bit too far. It was never her intention to hurt Emma, which she clearly was. "I'm sorry... I shouldn't..."

But Regina didn't get the chance to finish her sentence. "No, you shouldn't!" Emma interjected. "Can you honestly tell me that the person horrifying those innocent people even remotely resembles our son?" She looked at Regina, the fire still strong in those emerald eyes. "You have no idea how this feels... I can... I cannot even begin to explain how this feels..." Emma said distraught.

Seeing the wounded look on Emma's face, Regina did something very uncharacteristic. She wrapped both her arms tightly around the dejected woman in front of her, hugging her firmly. Emma's first reaction was to fight the unwelcome embrace but somehow it felt so comfortable and right to be held by Regina in this moment that she hugged her back. The emotions in her so strong, she almost blocked the smaller woman's air supply because her hold was way too tight. Regina let her until breathing definitely became an issue, she gently pushed Emma away from her taking a big gulp of air.

Emma immediately felt guilty and soothingly rubbed Regina's back, giving her as much room as their awkward stance allowed. "Thank you, Regina." She said not really knowing what she needed to thank Regina for, however it felt just right to do so.

Regina accepted the words with a soft smile and quickly hugged Emma once more, shorter this time. "Can you ... maybe ... try?" she asked perceptively.

Emma smiled buying herself a bit more time to gather her thoughts before she tried to explain, "Well, I don't know if I mentioned this with everything happening since you w... since I got my memories back but I remember this life. Which is pretty unnerving since I already have a set of fake memories from that time you had to undo Pan's curse." Emma paused, with an encouraging smile from Regina she continued, "But yeah, I remember everything however at the same time I know it's all fake. It's... weird to say the least." she chuckled.

Emma's attempt at humor was one of her deflection techniques Regina knew but she didn't comment on it. She just nodded her understanding which made the blonde comfortable enough to continue. "I was happy, my life was full and at the same time something was missing. Technically I was a princess for all but a couple of hours but still it feels like a lifetime. That means that the Henry that lives here is my son. That as his mother I was proud of him and how I've raised him, until I saw him in Robin's camp..." She swallowed and bit back tears.

"That Henry was..."

"...the Evil Queen's son." Regina and Emma finished simultaneously, staring in each other's eyes, surprised.

Regina tentatively put her hand on Emma's arm, "I saw it too. Our son would have never terrorized innocent people, he would never resort to violence not even when his grandparents had been killed."

"True, you raised him better." Emma admitted.

"We did, remember." Regina gently squeezed Emma's arm.

"How could I forget..." Emma said gratefully causing the atmosphere to change. She looked affectionately in Regina's eyes, who was staring back at her with the same fervor. The beat of her heart sped up like it always did when they were looking at each other like this and she bit her lip. The brunette's eyes darkened involuntarily, her breathing becoming somewhat erratic.

Time stood still and everything around them seemed to disappear. They forgot where they were or why. This was their moment and this time there was no one around to stop what was about to happen. The realization made Emma take a small step back, ruining the moment.

Disappointment clouded the chocolate eyes before her, Emma hated to be the cause of it. Regina was puzzled, clearly the blonde had wanted to kiss her earlier that day and only just seconds ago as well. Heck, Emma had even wanted to be kissed by her at the palace, which now seemed like an eternity ago. The longer they stood there, the more evident it became that if Regina didn't say something quickly Emma would run away. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." Emma replied curtly.

"No," Regina said, stepping closer to the blonde cupping her face with one hand while she lay the other gently over Emma's heart, "Then tell me why your heart is beating like this." She brought her lips impossibly close to the blonde's making them breath the same air. "Tell me you don't feel anything... right now."

Emma only swallowed, heart racing, thighs clenching, she had never wanted anything more than to feel Regina's lips on hers in that moment. Regina's eyes were unbelievingly dark, her mouth ridiculously inviting yet something felt... wrong. Emma couldn't put her finger on it and she knew that if Regina brought their lips together she wasn't going to deny her. However, Emma also knew that because of her earlier hesitation Regina would never make the first move, it was up to her.

"I feel it," Emma said, talking caused their lips to grace each other because of their proximity. Regina had to do everything she could not to close the nonexistent distance between them. "I just can't... sorry."

Emma didn't know where she got the willpower to step away from the most enchanting woman she had ever met, still she did it. She hurriedly walked past Regina, her lip trembling and tears springing to her eyes. Not until she was outside she allowed herself to take a deep breath. "Fuck!" she screamed at the top of her lungs, causing some startled birds to fly away indignantly.

The blonde dropped to her knees, sobbing angrily. Years she had waited for Regina, ever since she'd got to know the real Regina she had fallen for her, hard. But the brunette always seemed unattainable, even uninterested. Of course there had been moments even Emma thought the possibility of them could exist. They were without a doubt magical together and there was definitely chemistry but for reasons unknown to her Regina had always kept her distance. She had even pursued Robin and begun a relationship with him, claiming he was her happy ending.

Emma distinctly remembered how hurt and angry the brunette had been when she had accidently brought Marian back from the past. The real Robin hadn't been deceased that long and yet here she was ready to ... to ... to what exactly? Emma angrily pounded the floor with her fist repeatedly until her knuckles hurt. She cursed Regina for her timing, but she cursed her own cowardice more. Why had she never had the courage to step up to Regina and flat out told her how she felt? No, she had settled for Hook because she didn't believe the former Evil Queen was even remotely interested in her.

Suddenly Emma knew! The reason she hadn't been able to kiss Regina. There was someone waiting for her, someone who didn't deserve all this. He had come back from the death for her, she was his True Love. He had begged her time and time again to leave him be, why hadn't she? Although she loved certain things about him, he wasn't her True Love, that much she had always known. Regina on the other hand...

She cursed Regina's timing again, for good measurement! Emma knew it was futile because it was as much her own fault thus she cursed herself yet again. If only she had listened to Hook but he had become so important and since Regina had Robin she didn't want to end up being alone. Hook distracted her, she loved him for that. She sounded like a terrible person, she knew. She even hated herself a bit, if only she could talk to him right now. She would explain everything, including the real reason they couldn't be together anymore. But she couldn't, not in this moment at least.

Inside the cabin a flabbergasted Regina was still in the exact same spot she had been before the blonde had left her. She was almost crying and wondering why Emma couldn't kiss her. There was unmistakably something between them. She had known for quite a while but never believed herself to be good enough for Emma, not that the handless wonder was any better. Regina facepalmed herself, rolling her eyes when she realized what was going on.

She knew the blonde hadn't gone far because she could hear her cursing and pounding the floor. Regina tentatively approached Emma who was still on her knees and gently placed a hand on her shoulder. The blonde looked up at her with tearstained eyes. "Is it Hook?"

"Yes. No." Emma sighed. "I love him, Regina."

Regina tried to swallow around the lump in her throat and bit the inside of her cheek to keep herself from crying, Emma's statement hurt a lot. The blonde though saw what her words had done and regretted them immediately. She sighed again and took a deep breath before adding, "But I'm not in love with him. I never really was. He was just there, a distraction..." she trailed off.

When it became clear she wasn't going to continue Regina timidly asked, "A distraction from what?"

Emma laughed somberly before wiping her dirty hand on her trousers and standing up. She cupped Regina's face and said, "You really have to ask?"

Before the older woman could reply Emma brushed her lips against Regina's. Wordlessly showing her how she felt, deepening the kiss. It was a passionate kiss conveying all their feelings, Emma didn't let things get out of hand however when there were still so many conflicting feelings inside her. They broke apart, the blonde pressed her lips one finale time against the brunette's.

She wanted to say something but the sound of someone appearing in their midst distracted both of them successfully. "No! No! No! This wasn't supposed to happen!" Fake Rumple told them in his singsong voice. "At least not here, not now!"

"What do you mean?" Regina voiced the question on both women's minds.

"Never you mind, dearies." And with that he was gone again.

Emma and Regina looked at each other not understanding what had just happened.

* * *

 _ **I believe that some of you will probably hate me a bit for this but I will make it up to you, I promise :-). I**_ _ **also**_ _ **borrowed some dialogue from the actual show (with a slight variation), care to guess which part?**_


	7. Trembling

**_A/N: Enjoy!_**

* * *

 _Earlier..._

The moment Prince Henry left Regina's palace a soft whoosh was heard and Rumple appeared next to the lifeless bodies of Queen Snow and King David. He put his fingertips together repeatedly and couldn't help but giggle, one of his evil squeaky giggles. When he told other Regina, as he called her in his head, that every savior needed a villain he hadn't expected her to actually kill anybody. This was beyond his wildest hopes.

Somehow he thought that his little hint might have opened other Regina's eyes about the true nature of her connection with Emma, clearly the brunette hadn't been that quick to apprehend or was it that she was too far in denial about her true feelings... Rumple didn't know and decided instantly that he didn't care. He was a free man and more importantly Emma, the savior, wasn't going to cause any troubles.

He waved his hands over the Charmings casting a preserving spell, he didn't want their bodies to decay any more than they had already done, which wasn't much fortunately. Rumple was happy, they were part of his plan. One he now had, thanks to other Regina. Although he pretended to not really care, he thought about this intriguing woman again and all the potential she had. He wondered again why she hadn't broken the spell Emma was under the traditional way, by kissing her, when there was clearly something going on between them. Why else would someone risk their life to save somebody, only when you loved or at least cared deeply for that person would you be willing to do that.

Kiss or no kiss, the result was satisfying. Since Regina was defeated and his son had died, he had lost all purpose until other Regina showed up. She was important he knew, she would accomplish something. What exactly was still unclear but it was something powerful! He had even started to think about resurrecting Neal. He knew magic couldn't bring back the dead, but since he had been successful at bottling True Love, another thing that was said to be something that couldn't be achieved by magic, he had hope. There were still a lot of things he didn't know about magic and all its potential. Maybe he could manage to time travel or visit a parallel universe and retrieve his son from that one... Either way there were a lot of things he could try and since he now possessed the very vessels of True Love the possibilities were endless.

Not wanting to waste another minute he magicked all of them back to his castle and started working on his new plans.

~~~oOo~~~

After successfully dropping off both women at the cabin, Robin was back at his camp which, he was glad to see, hadn't been destroyed by Prince Henry, yet. The angry young man was still looking through tents, scaring people in the process. Robin sighed, this was the very reason he didn't submit to any crown. They were all nice and good to you when you paid them taxes, certainly when you paid a lot of them but the moment things went awry they were breathing down your neck, treating you like a piece of shit.

He carefully made his way over to Prince Henry and addressed the young knight, "Prince Henry, maybe I can help you?" he said.

Henry turned gladly towards Robin and smiled tentatively, "You know where the Evil Queen is?"

"Well, no..." Robin began and Henry's smile faltered, "I don't believe the woman you are searching for is indeed the Evil Queen."

"What are you trying to say?" Prince Henry's voice was firm, all pleasantness was swiftly disappearing. Was this man for real, he had seen with his own eyes how the Evil Queen had threatened his family and killed his grandparents. Okay, maybe he hadn't literally seen her kill them but he had seen the result of her threats.

"Regina, the woman you refer to as Evil Queen, might not be the woman you take her for." Robin explained, though he didn't really know what was making him say this. He had talked to both woman and they hadn't really given him any reason to think of them as trustworthy. On the contrary... yet he was defending the brunette as if he knew her personally. "I briefly talked to her and she seemed kind and ..."

He was cut off when Henry erupted in loud, obnoxious laughter. It was clear the boy was forcing the sound out in a mocking way. "Kind! Ha ha ha haaa!" Instantly he stopped laughing and added in a very serious tone, "Don't make me laugh! You honestly want me to believe that that ... person had any kindness in her. You must be very dim!"

"I'm not... I just took the time to talk to her and from what I've seen your mother didn't seem to think she was evil either."

The words had barely left Robin's mouth when the back of Henry's hand connected with his cheek, hard! "That woman has abducted my mother! She would never willingly go with the killer of her parents! Don't ever try to tell me my mom chooses that over her own parents. Ever!"

Fire was shooting from his eyes by the end of his statement and Robin didn't dare to contradict the boy's words for fear of him hurting everyone else as well. Instead he rubbed his cheek defiantly and said, "Whatever you say, Prince Henry. You know her best after all."

"Damn right I do! Now, the fact that you spoke with her tells me you might know where she went and what she wanted."

"All she wanted was to go home... wherever home might be. For all I know she already got there."

"Home?" Henry was confused, he wondered what she could have meant because she had been home. She had killed his grandparents at her home...

"Home." Robin confirmed and shrugged.

But before they could say or do anything else, the earth began trembling and everyone tried to grab something or someone in their neighborhood in order to keep standing. Some succeeded, some ended on their hands and knees on the shaking ground. As soon as the trembling had come, it was gone again, leaving everyone a little dazed.

"That's new." Henry said, "I don't think we ever had an earthquake before."

"I wouldn't really know, but I haven't experienced any since I came here." Robin concurred.

They looked at each other questioningly a little longer before Henry decided to leave. To make sure he wouldn't happen upon the cabin by accident Robin steered Henry and his troops in the opposite direction.

~~~oOo~~~

Rumple was standing between a magically floating Snow and a magically floating David taking samples from their bodies, along with any piece of jewelry he encountered. He put everything in a little gold cauldron in which they seemed to melt together. Although melting wasn't really what they were doing, more like absorbing each other's energy and becoming more powerful. Whatever was going on it seemed to please Rumple as he squeaked louder with each newfound item on the bodies.

He had already tried a couple of things that would help him resurrect his son but he hadn't been successful, yet. He didn't despair though, he was only trying for a day and half which wasn't that long considering how long ago he had lost Bae. And even if he wouldn't be successful in his resurrection attempts the bodies before gave him plenty of other options for powerful potions and spells. Rumple was a happy man when suddenly the very ground on which he stood began trembling like it had never done before!

It only lasted for a moment, Rumple looked around him trying to figure out what could have made the earth tremble... Was it something he had done wrong? Because he was dealing with two powerful vessels, maybe he had been careless in his handling... Maybe he had been too focused on the wrong things... He quickly checked everything he had done so far and concluded he wasn't the cause. In fact nothing within this room could have been the cause. Which was strange to say the least because the only thing powerful enough to cause the trembling was... True Love!

Immediately he knew what had happened, other Regina had finally succeeded in kissing Emma. And whatever had kept them from doing just that was now broken, they might not realize it but they had inadvertently changed something! Foolish women! This was way too soon, he focused on the origin of the trembling and magicked himself to the very place.

~~~oOo~~~

Rumple had come and gone and both Regina and Emma were stupefied, neither woman had the slightest idea what the evil imp was on about. All they had done was share a kiss. True, they both had to admit it was probably the best kiss they had ever experienced no matter how insignificant it had seemed. It felt different, it felt like everything was right, it felt like... love.

Emma looked at Regina and raised her shoulders silently telling her she had no clue what had just happened or what they could have done. Regina reacted in an equal manner.

"Is it me... or is this version of Rumple even crazier than ours?" the blonde asked and chuckled a bit.

Regina couldn't help but chuckle also, the thought had crossed her mind more than once as well. "Definitely."

"What was he on about?"

"Hell if I know..." the brunette replied. "I don't think we were doing anything wrong."

"No, we definitely weren't." Emma absentmindedly answered before the reality of their situation caught up with her and she hastily tried to rectify her slip up. "I mean... we were... it was... I..."

Regina chuckled even more, the blonde might not realize it but she was damn cute! The brunette shook her head and said, "I know, Emma, but you can't deny it felt right."

Emma's only answer was a smile before she pulled the brunette flush against her and brought their lips together again. Regina whimpered when she felt the blonde's lips on hers. When she felt Emma's warm tongue trace her bottom lip she let out a groan and willingly allowed the blonde entrance. Their first kiss might have been all sweet but this kiss was a lot more...

Hands slowly roamed in new places, tongues dueling for dominance. Regina's thigh slipped between Emma's, pressing against her throbbing core forcing a moan past the blonde's lips. They both realized that if they didn't stop this soon things would get out of hand. Reluctantly they broke apart, resting their foreheads against each other, smiling.

"I want you..." the blonde whispered, trembling. "But..."

Regina placed a chaste kiss against Emma's lips before replying, "I know and I want you too."

As if they didn't have a care in the world, they just stood there embracing each other, smiling happily.

~~~oOo~~~

The earthquake had happened throughout all the land, also on the beach where the bean portal had been.

Ripples like water were created on the very spot and as if time ran backwards the portal opened again, the vortex running counterclockwise until the bean which had created it appeared on the beach again.


	8. Darkness within

_**A/N: Thank you all for the support, I have finally managed to write another chapter. Towards the end it gets a bit darker (fair warning). I don't think there are many chapters left, but I'm already working on a new idea :-). Enjoy!**_

* * *

The bean lay forgotten on the beach like nothing had happened, no one knew... Regina and Emma were even oblivious to the real effect their kiss had had and were leisurely strolling through the woods trying to find a way to get home. After spending some time in each other's arms, kissing tenderly trying not to let things get out of hand they had decided to pay fake Rumple a visit.

His swift appearance had them thinking he at least knew what was going on, they had tried to summon him but hadn't been successful. Seeing how Rumple had been mad at them for kissing too early, at least according to him, he was probably ignoring them out of some sort of punishment. If he didn't want to come to them, they would go to him. They tried to avoid the open roads because they knew Prince Henry would be searching for them and the last thing they needed was to have him find them.

And although both women had magic and could easily use it in this realm they had decided against doing it. For some reason they feared the price they would have to pay for using magic here was higher than they'd ever paid before. Like using magic in this realm could somehow double or triple the price. And Regina was still feeling the aftereffect of killing Snowing but admitted this only to herself. Although the blonde had told her she was fine and she didn't blame Regina for killing her parents, it still felt wrong to bring it up. Regina was afraid it would ruin whatever it was that was going on between them. But a trace of the darkness she had felt earlier - and had known her entire adult life - lingered under the surface.

An internal battle was going on and she didn't understand how that was even possible given that she had left the Evil Queen in the real world. She was no longer literally inside of her, but somehow that didn't seem to make a difference. She felt the darkness battle within her trying to come to the surface, trying hard to convince her how good it had felt to crush those hearts, how nice it was to rid herself finally of her mortal enemies. For a flicker of a second she had believed that voice, she had agreed that it had indeed felt good but it wasn't true that wasn't her, not anymore. And she was devastated by what she had done, what Emma had made her do.

Emma... sparks flew from the brunette's hands again while anger flashed through her eyes. It was brief and she wasn't sure where it came from but it had been there, the blame. The moment it was gone she knew she didn't really blame Emma but instead blamed the Evil Queen. However seconds earlier she had blamed Emma or at least the voice within her had, almost successful at convincing her of its truth. She shook her head and stopped in her tracks. Emma, who was walking in front of her, hadn't noticed the sparks or the misplaced anger, luckily. But the moment Regina stopped walking, Emma felt there was something off.

She turned towards her ... gently pleading with her eyes to tell her what was going on, Regina though remained quiet and averted her eyes. Ashamed at the love she saw projected at her through the blonde's eyes. She didn't deserve that, not now, not after what had just been on her mind. Emma, a little startled, moved closer to the brunette and reached for her. Regina almost jerked away from the touch and the blonde's hand immediately fell to her side. Brow furrowed in even more confusion. Not that long ago they had practically been unable to control themselves, now the otherwise confident brunette seemed uncomfortable, abashed even.

Before Emma got the chance to question the brunette, she motioned for her to continue. The blonde however, wasn't giving up just yet. "Regina," she began, in a voice laced with worry and love.

"It's fine, Emma." Regina tried to convince herself as much as Emma, the blonde noticed this but the sound of Regina's broken voice moved her to drop it and walk on. They would talk about this later, now they needed to find the evil imp.

Regina let out a long sigh when she saw Emma's affectionate nod before she turned around and started to walk away. The fact that Emma didn't push her but respected her enough to drop the issue until she was ready to talk about it made her heart swell inside her chest. She had never loved anyone in the way she had loved Emma, no one had ever treated her better than the blonde had and she felt immensely guilty for all the things she had once done towards the birthmother of her son.

Something, entirely different from what she had been feeling before, flared up inside of her and she was momentarily shook to the core. Her heart was hammering inside her chest, blood rushing through her veins and electricity coursing up and down her spine. The feelings were summoned when thoughts of their first meeting and every other heated discussion they had had in the past sprang to Regina's mind. Suddenly everything made so much sense, of course the Evil Queen hated Emma. The blonde made her feel things she absolutely could not feel, she was threatened by her. Threatened by the potential of them, the love that would undo everything... undo _her_.

That love was doing things to Regina, she felt like she was going to combust if she didn't do something soon. Sparks again flew from her hands and she stopped, she reached out towards Emma, who still had her back to her, but immediately retracted her hand. Afraid of hurting her...

"Emma," the word breathlessly left Regina's lips, her voice trembling.

Even before Emma had fully turned around Regina crashed her mouth against Emma's walking her backwards until her back connected with a tree. Knocking the wind from Emma's lungs but she didn't mind at all when Regina slipped her tongue inside her mouth and thoroughly explored it. Regina's hand fisted in Emma's hair pulling her head slightly back granting her more access.

The blonde's knees buckled from all the emotions ransacking her body. She had shared a couple of kisses with Regina since their little revelation but this one was different. It was filled with all the raw feelings Regina had kept in her over the years. All her love for the blonde boiled over and if she could she would have melted herself with the savior. Emma's heart almost exploded in her chest.

Both women were so engrossed in each other they completely forgot where they were or why. The only thing that mattered was showing the other how much she was loved. And it wasn't until Regina felt the pointy end of a sword being pressed to the back of her neck that she realized the mistake they had made...

"Get away from my mother or I swear I'll..." Henry's voice boomed furiously through the trees.

Regina was barely able to move away from the blonde without fearing the blade breaking her skin or doing serious damage, she managed nevertheless to withdraw her mouth from Emma's so she could tell him, "I would love to get away from Emma but your sword tends to make that a little difficult."

He allowed Regina room to move but not without remarking, "Should have thought of that sooner, before attacking my mom."

Regina, despite the seriousness of the situation, couldn't help but chuckle. She considered setting the record straight but decided it was probably better to hold her silence, instead she turned back to look at him, a smirk firmly in place.

Emma had paled considerably since Henry's appearance. She looked back and forth between Regina and Henry, looking at the brunette with an absolutely lethal glint in his eyes, before clearing her throat gaining both of their attention. "Hey kid, she wasn't attacking me."

Henry gasped, not understanding what was going on and who this person that resembled his mother so much really was. "What are you trying to say?"

Emma saw his shocked expression and offered him a warm smile, but when she moved closer to him he readily held up his sword warding her off. "I'm ... she ... um... I don't think you'd understand."

His eyebrows rose so high they almost disappeared in his hairline, eyes bulging from his skull. "You... no!" he shook his head violently as if that would somehow make it untrue. "You can't love her?! She killed your _PARENTS,_ my _GRANDPARENTS!"_ He shouted at the blonde.

"I know what she did, but it wasn't real... Please, Henry, give us a chance to explain..." Emma pleaded with her son, hoping he would believe them or at least grant them the opportunity to explain.

A shocked but determined Henry remained silent for a little while longer, making Emma confident he would listen to them. A soft smile tugged at the corners of her mouth, Henry's face mimicked the expression filling the blonde's heart with happiness until she saw the soft smile slowly transform into a full-blown smirk. "Shackle them both!" The order left a smug Henry's mouth, though he had yet to give the final blow, "And gag them!"

~~~oOo~~~

Both women had been gagged and bound, without resistance. Regina's hand had been itching to perform whatever magic she could conjure to get them out of this situation but she still was unable to use magic against her own son. She knew he was as fake as the rest of the inhabitants of this realm, but he looked so real. He was nothing like the Henry both women had raised that was waiting for them in Storybrooke yet she couldn't. Emma was also unable to do anything and was optimistic that she could somehow get through to him, she had to have hope that everything would turn out alright.

Her current situation did nothing to set her mind at ease however, she was back in a cell. Separated from Regina and her heart sank in her shoes as she realized that there might be a good chance the brunette had been executed upon arrival. Hadn't Henry vowed he would make her pay?

However, Regina's heart was still beating but that was about the only positive thing that could be said for her. She was dressed in weird smelling rags, with her arms suspended above her connected to the ceiling and her feet barely touching the ground. Her entire body was screaming and she desperately tried to shift so she could find some form of relief for her arms. The door to her cell was opened and for a split second Regina's mood lightened hoping it was Emma who'd come to release her. Heavy footsteps told her it wasn't, it was a guard judging by the chinking sound his armor made. She strained her neck as far as it went hoping to catch a glimpse from whomever had just entered, the attempt failed. Another set of footsteps could be heard, they were heavy as well but less so. She didn't need to see this time, it was Henry.

The young knight stepped further into the cell towards the woman in the middle, suspended from the ceiling by her arms. When he stood directly behind her, a sound somewhere between an snicker and a laugh escaped his mouth. His delight made Regina's heartbeat sped up, whatever he had planned she wasn't going to like it. His hands wrapped around her throat from behind and squeezed until breathing became an issue. A single tear left her eyes as they closed from the loss of air, her head started spinning and she felt simultaneously nauseous and lightheaded. Only one thought occupied her mind: _so this is it, this is how I die... at the hands of my son_.

Right before she lost consciousness he released her and she took a couple of deep breaths, the burning sensation hurt but she didn't care. Her body and brain needed the oxygen. His hands were still upon her shoulders and she wanted to plead, yell, scream at Henry to stop but no words left her. The lack of oxygen had rendered her speechless. The hands moved to her neck again but grabbed her rags this time, without hesitation Henry ripped them revealing Regina's bare back.

For the first time since entering he spoke, "You've killed my grandparents." His voice a low hiss, "I'm going to hurt you as much as that has hurt me and I promise you, it hurt beyond anything I have ever experienced..."

* * *

 _ **Thoughts?**_


	9. Salvation

_**A/N: An extra long chapter :-) There's only one more left after this, just so you know. There is a part which is rather dark but not overly so but I have to put a trigger warning here. Enjoy!  
**_

* * *

The Dark One felt the pull of being summoned by someone, he knew exactly who was trying to gain his attention but he was angry at them making him resist the sensation. First he wanted to know exactly how powerful their love had been. Rumple had followed the ripples of magic that had run through the land until he got to the beach where he had handed the bean to Regina. He wasn't sure what had brought him here because there was nothing to see. This place was the apex of the magic they had created so there had to be something...

Henry and his small army had left Robin's camp, riding through the woods fast, following Hood's directions closely. They rode until they reached the end of the forest and halted on the beach a couple of meters away from Rumple still looking for something magical. When he saw the army approaching he abandoned his little mission and addressed them, asking them what had brought them here. For a brief moment he wondered if they had followed the magic trail as well until her realized Prince Henry didn't possess magic or at the very least didn't know how to handle it.

They informed him Robin Hood had told them Emma and Regina had gone this way and were trying to find them. Rumple chuckled darkly, "Well, dearies, it seems the archer sent you in the wrong direction..." and continued to show them exactly where they needed to go. "Wait, I have a little gift for you... as you realize they both have magic and are not afraid to use it." He threw a little bag to Henry and told him how he had to use the objects inside preventing both women from doing any kind of magic.

Pleased they didn't waste another moment on the beach he went back to finding whatever it was he needed to find. Sending Prince Henry after Emma and Regina both bought him time and was a little retribution. Something caught his eye and he moved swiftly to it, bending down and picking up the magic bean he knew the brunette had used. Their magic was turning back time... this was both terrifying and interesting. He took the bean with him and magicked himself back to his castle.

Once there he didn't waste any time to process the magic bean. It was as if it hadn't been used: if he were to drop it, it would open a new portal. But portals wouldn't bring his son back because there was no portal to go where he was. Besides Rumple reminded himself magic couldn't bring anyone back from the dead. He was making slow progression with the Charmings but somewhere in the back of his mind he knew he would never succeed. The revelation of the bean on the other hand was something else. Would Regina's and Emma's true love be strong enough to dissolve this realm and all its inhabitants?

He had never heard of true love being powerful enough to turn back time either, so maybe he needed to explore the possibilities of the women's love for each other and all it was capable of. It would be better not living at all than never being able to reunite with his son. Rumple was glad that there were other realms in which he had been reunited with his son, that simple thought was enough to help him make a decision.

~~~oOo~~~

A trickle of blood ran down her back, shortly culminating at the base of it before running down her leg and dripping from her toes to the floor. There was already a small pool of her blood on it, making it slippery and even harder to stay upright. Her suspended arms were so numb and painful she feared that if she wasn't released soon she would lose permanent use of them. They already felt like they were severely damaged.

Regina didn't know how long she had endured this and what was still to come but it had been a couple of days. She hadn't eaten anything, she was only allowed a couple sips of water a day, not enough to quench her thirst but enough to keep her alive. Henry had promised to hurt her and he had, more than he could ever imagine. Not only physically but emotionally as well. Two things pleased her however 1) he hadn't undressed her completely, because she might never have been his mother in this realm but she feared that would have conflicted her relationship with her real son and 2) she hadn't been sexually assaulted. Henry didn't want any information from her either, she hadn't been questioned at all. He was true to his word, only doing this to hurt her as some form of justice.

The moment a whip connected with her back for the first time, breaking the skin it had touched, the reaction in her had been so strong the magic within her acted on its own. But nothing happened, in her mind she had untied her arms and choked the guard, who had hit her, with his own whip. She tried and tried to make her magic work but something was blocking it. Henry had seen her struggle and when realization dawned on her face, he had smiled and said, "What, you thought I would be stupid enough to let you use magic. Someone has been very eager to help me with that."

"Rumple..." Regina groaned.

Henry's smile only increased. Regina's hope for a good outcome deflated completely because she realized Henry would have also used this method of blocking magic on Emma and her optimism of being saved by the blonde once more reduced until not a single trace of it remained.

Another crack of the whip and a drop of blood being added to the puddle brought her back to the present. She had no way of seeing what her back looked like by now but judging from how it felt she didn't think there was a single spot left that wasn't raw and bleeding. Some parts felt so sore from being hit multiple times she expected no skin was left, baring the muscles that lay underneath. The thought alone made her unwell and she smiled to suppress her gag reflex.

Henry who had almost been there the entire time misread the smile for a real one and sneered, "You still think this is a joke..."

He moved aggressively towards the guard yanking the whip out of his hands. Although Regina couldn't see this, she had interpreted the noise his move had made correctly. "Henry, no!" she tried but it was to no avail, Henry raised his arm and repeatedly brought it down in swift motions not even giving Regina the time to recover from one lash before another and another and another met her raw skin. Her eyes closed and everything turned to black...

~~~oOo~~~

 _Three days ago..._

Emma had been in her cell a couple of hours, anxiously trying to find out if the brunette was still alive but all of her attempts to get information from the guards had been futile. She was pacing up and down, the hope in her was so strong she convinced herself that if Regina had indeed been executed she would have felt this deep within her.

The blonde mused if their connection was strong enough to find out what was going on with Regina despite this separation. She stopped pacing and walked over to the cot that was in a corner of the small cell, she sat down upon it and tried to relax her breathing and anxiety. She took a couple of deep breaths, letting them out very slowly. The sensation of fresh air running through her, filling her with an excess of oxygen calmed her down considerably. She closed her eyes and focused all her attention of her friend.

She concentrated on Regina's chocolate eyes filled with both love and enthusiasm all the times they had landed upon hers. They used to have this evil glint, that looked more like a very passionate smolder in Emma's mind now. The change in their relationship made her see things like they had truly been, not like she had used to interpret them. Her heartbeat sped up and she bit her bottom lip, the sensation of seeing Regina's darkened eyes almost made her come undone. The visions were so realistic it was almost like her friend was standing in front of her.

The blonde concentrated on how Regina smelled and the sound of her deep, sultry voice filled with both concern and authority. A smile formed on Emma's face when she imagined what other things would come from those plump lips when all of this was behind them. And finally, she concentrated on how much she loved the brunette and how it had felt to hold her and be held by her. Her heart was hammering inside her chest, literally hurting but she didn't mind.

She tried to focus on what Regina was feeling at the moment and the fearful anticipation that gripped her heart made Emma realize the brunette was still alive but in serious discomfort. The blonde gasped when her stomach churned violently and her mouth went dry. She didn't know what was happening or going to happen but Regina needed her, she needed her now. When a jolt of pain ripped through her body, she jumped from the cot and summoned all magic within her to try and break out of her cell.

Nothing happened... she knew she was willing the power within to open the cell door and ward off anyone foolish enough to try and stop her but in reality she was standing there inside her small cell with a firmly locked door. The anger inside Emma didn't give up however and she launched herself on the door trying frantically to pull it from its hinges. But last time she checked she wasn't the Incredible Hulk and the cell door wasn't made of paper either...

The tumult Emma was causing caught the attention of the guards, they motioned to each other before checking what was going on. They announced their presence and asked her to step away from the door. Emma ignored them and kept trying to get out of the cell. One of them opened the latch on the door to see what the blonde was doing but the moment his face moved into sight she stabbed him in the eye hard. The man staggered backwards, hands flying to his hurt eye, for a moment it felt like he had lost it.

The other guard wanting to punish the blonde for her defiance opened the cell door and went inside. Emma lunged for him kicking him hard between his legs. When he fell to his knees, hands firmly covering his crotch, she used the momentum to kick him in the face while pulling his sword from his belt. The man had no chance and fell unconscious to the floor. The half blind guard pulled out his own sword and challenged the blonde while still covering his eye. Emma quickly disarmed him and knocked him to the floor as well.

Although a part of her had lived its entire life in this palace she had rarely been to the dungeons. She didn't really know where she was going but she knew she had to find Regina, fast. The feeling of being in pain had only intensified over the last couple of minutes and so had the fear gripping her heart. Unfortunately it took Emma too long to find where she needed to go and several guards appeared out of nowhere, or that was how it seemed to the blonde. She tried to fight off as many as she could but in the end realized that if she didn't yield she would end up being killed in her effort to save the love of her life and that wouldn't benefit either one of them.

The sword fell to the ground with a loud thud and Emma raised her arms in surrender. Two guards grabbed her, each pulling one of her arms behind her back and tying them securely. Another guard did the same to her legs while yet another one held the pointy end of his sword threateningly to her throat daring her to make a move. She didn't move a muscle, not when they were tying the ropes around her and not when they dragged her back to her cell, where they none too gently dropped her to the floor, not releasing her, before moving out of her cells and locking the door.

The one with the sore eye opened the latch again, unafraid this time because there was no way the blonde could hurt him and said, "Not much of a savior now."

~~~oOo~~~

The first thing Regina felt after blacking out was water being splashed in her face and a burning sensation on her back, it felt like a weight had been put on it. That was when she realized she was lying on the floor while someone was trying to wake her up by almost waterboarding her. She coughed violently and tried to sit up, but she was too feeble from being tortured for days. She however managed to turn on her side, it wasn't much better but at least the burning sensation lessened.

Regina was able to open and close her hands for the first time and repeated the motion just to make sure her limbs were still working perfectly. They felt like dead weight but she was able to use her hands making her positive given time they would heal. The guard realized she had regained consciousness and moved to pull her upright but was stopped when Henry ordered him not to.

"Leave her, she is dying tomorrow anyway."

They left her lying there, soaking wet, bleeding, sore, vulnerable, ashamed... Regina hadn't felt like this is forever and she hated it. Tears ran down her cheeks sobbing fiercely, making her cough only hurting more. She wanted to die from embarrassment and she knew that her body was weak enough to be able to just die if she gave in. Only two things kept that from happening: her love for Emma and for her real son. There was still hope she might be saved and if there wasn't this would all be over soon anyway.

Outside her cell Henry informed the guards he was going to visit his mother, since her little breakout she had behaved properly and had been released from her bonds. She had even been fed and cared for. He had tried talking to her over the past days but she was talking nonsense and he feared Regina might have performed some brainwashing magic on her.

He wanted to give it one more try and decided to inform her of the brunette's execution tomorrow at dawn. He knocked on her cell door, as a courtesy, before entering without getting a reply from his mother, he hadn't been expecting one either. Since he had made it clear he didn't believe her, she had refused to talk to him. But no matter how insane she was, she was still his mom and he loved her dearly.

"Hi mom," he began before sitting down next to her on the small cot, "how are you feeling?"

Emma gave him a shrewd look, still refusing to talk to him. She looked away again, staring blankly in front of her and he tried again. "Mom, please, don't be mad at me. She gave me no choice..."

This comment tore a harsh laugh from Emma's chest interrupting whatever he was going to say. "Henry, please, don't..."

"Why are you being like this?" he asked earnestly.

She glanced in his direction and offered him a pitying smile, "You always have a choice. You could have chosen to believe me, you could have chosen to not torture her," just saying the words made her jaw clench tightly. Emma had kept the connection she had to Regina, feeling everything the brunette had, hoping that this would somehow give her strength, taking some of the pain for her. She of course had no way of knowing if it had worked, when she lost the connection not that long ago she feared Regina had finally succumbed to her injuries. "You could have chosen to set us free and let us leave, you could have chosen to forgive her, you could have..."

But Emma didn't get the chance to finish, Henry put up his hands in surrender and said, "I get it. Maybe I could have done all that or maybe you just say all these things to mess with me because she brainwashed you as part of her evil plan to take over the kingdom."

The blonde scoffed, slowly shaking her head. "Doesn't matter what I say, you refuse to believe me, to believe your own mother. Have I ever given you the idea I'm untrustworthy?"

"No, but you have to admit you are not the same person you were before she appeared." It wasn't a question.

Emma couldn't deny it because the person she was at this moment might be the complete opposite of who she had been in this world, she had tried to explain this... She remained silent because she was tired of trying to argue with "her son".

"Well, I came here to inform you that tomorrow at dawn she will be executed." Henry stated matter-of-factly as if he just told his mother what he wanted from the store.

The reaction in Emma was strong, she swallowed audibly but apart from that managed to refrain from showing any emotion. She figured that if she played this right, he might allow her to be there, allow her to at least say goodbye. A single tear made its way down the blonde's face but she just ignored it, hoping Henry was too self-involved to notice. She took a steadying breath before uttering as calmly as humanly possible, "Okay, I understand that's the choice you made."

Henry was definitely confused, he had anticipated a lot of things but this wasn't it. "You sure you are okay with it?" he asked, hoping he would get some clarification.

"Yes," even saying the word hurt but she battled through, "looking at things from your point of view I understand you need to do this. Can I ask you two things?"

He nodded, convinced that his mother had indeed been genuine.

"Can I say goodbye and I would like to be there."

Henry contemplated her request and again nodded confirming she was allowed both things, "Yes, you can say goodbye before the execution." He stood up and left without saying another word.

Emma waited until she was sure he was completely gone before breaking down completely, the hurt in her chest was so painful she couldn't breathe, she thought she might die from the pain. She wanted some air and stood up but her legs were unable to hold her up and she fell to her knees before curling in herself gripping her chest hoping the pain would subside. Tears were running freely down her face and she bit her lip until it bled restricting any sound to come from her throat because all she wanted to do was scream until there was no air left in her lungs.

~~~oOo~~~

The night had come and gone and Emma had somehow managed to reach her cot again and was currently lying on top of it staring at the ceiling waiting to be escorted from her room to the throne room where she expected the execution would take place. She hadn't slept, some time ago she'd stopped crying because there were no tears left. But she didn't feel any better, on the contrary it being almost dawn made her queasy. A plate with breakfast on it had been shoved into her cell but it was still lying untouched near the door.

Footsteps approaching told her it was time, she sat up wiping her eyes and face hoping the look of distraught which she was sure was visible on her features would be imperceptible. She wanted to appear calm and composed and hoped she was successful. A guard approached her and she was escorted from her cell without being tied up, this alone convinced Emma she was.

She was led to the middle of the big circular room and asked to take place in one of the thrones next to Prince Henry. She was even addressed as 'your Majesty' but she didn't acknowledge this fact, she was too nervous wondering where Regina was and what she would look like. Henry gave her a small smile but Emma couldn't return it, instead she kept her eyes firmly on the door. It opened revealing two guards dragging in the limb body of the once fierce brunette.

If Emma hadn't known this was indeed Regina she wouldn't have recognized her, the brunette looked broken in many ways. Not only was she unable to walk by herself, the strong confident look that was always portrayed on her features was gone, a haunted look in her eyes as a substitute... Emma gasped and wanted to move from the throne and towards her but decided to wait a little longer.

Regina had recognized the gasp and looked directly into the eyes of the blonde, when she noticed how well kept Emma looked and where she was sat she became even more dispirited. Emma had been unhurt and free but hadn't tried to rescue her. Tears rolled down her cheeks and she quickly looked away, not wanting to show how hurt she was, she was already ashamed enough. Nevertheless Emma had noticed and her heart cringed.

The brunette was being pulled into a standing position while she was being bound to a pole standing between the door and the thrones, between the pole and the thrones four guards were positioned all of them holding a bow and a single arrow. Prince Henry started to tell all the attendants what Regina was accused of and that she had been sentenced to die. He also told them that before she was executed he had allowed his mother, their queen, to say goodbye.

Upon hearing these words Emma leapt from the royal seat running over to where Regina was, the movement startled Henry because he had expected her to address the Evil Queen from her place beside him. The blonde didn't care what anyone thought, only stopping when she was directly in front of her friend. Regina refused to acknowledge her, still hurt beyond words as to what the blonde had let her be put through.

A tender finger hooked under her chin and gently tugged her face upwards until the most devoted green eyes met her chocolate browns. Emma offered her an apologetic smile, judging correctly from her body language what she must be thinking. In a soft voice she said, "Regina, believe me I did everything in my power to save you. But I couldn't and I will never forgive myself that the one time I bravely chose to be the savior I was a failure."

Regina opened her mouth to say something but was gently silenced by the blonde's finger on her lips. "Let me finish, please." Emma wanted nothing more than to pull the broken figure in front of her in a hug and she motioned to the guards, ordering them to release her. They looked utterly troubled until the blonde repeated the order in a firm voice, "As your Queen, I order you to release her."

They did immediately as they were told and the moment she was completely released Regina crumbled to the floor but powerful arms held her up, pulling her carefully into a strong embrace. She threw her still aching arms around the tough woman holding her like her life depended on it. She immediately buried her face in Emma's neck and gently started to cry. The blonde had no idea how much she had needed this, or maybe she did just that. The blonde's strength oozed from her body into Regina's and although they both had been robbed of their magic, this felt strangely familiar.

Emma pulled back a little and continued, "If I could have done anything to save you I would, I almost died trying but it made me realize that if I had actually died it wouldn't be helpful either." She smiled softly and pressed her lips to Regina's in a tender kiss. Henry was looking on and although the display unnerved him, he was unable to react in any way. It felt like he was frozen, the women clearly loved each other. Some part of him was really choosing to believe his mother's words.

To Emma though the only people in this room were Regina and Emma herself. She said, "I don't want to live without you, Regina. I cannot live without you. The fact that we have wasted so much time already still hurts, I will always regret being too stubborn and craven to tell you how I really felt. I don't regret coming here because it made us stop being asses and finally admit what was clear from the start... That we love each other more than words can say."

Regina's heart swelled and a smile broke out on her features, no matter what was about to happen - or what had already happened - to her she was happier than she had ever been in her entire life. Hearing all those loving words from the blonde was all she needed. She might die in a few moments but their love would live forever. Again something stronger than she had ever felt went through her, magic was definitely part of it.

"Emma, I don't want to live without you either. I've been searching all my life for someone to see me for who I really was and not who I was made to be. To fill the hole inside my heart. Adopting your son, our son, was the best thing that could ever happen because it brought me you eleven years later. I wasn't taught how to love or even what love was, I had briefly experienced it or thought I had with Daniel. From the moment I met you I knew you were trouble, at least the darkest part of me did and she tried hard to push my feelings for you away. And I let her, because I was as afraid from you as she was. I was afraid of being loved and of loving someone wholly. Robin was a safe choice, I cared deeply for him and I thought that if I chose him to be my happy ending it would be enough but it wasn't."

The confession had left her momentarily breathless, she swallowed and Emma motioned to a guard to bring her some water. This time the order was obeyed without delay. Regina took a swift sip and continued, "I love you, Emma. You are the only one, aside from Henry, I ever truly loved. I regret the fact that it took us this long as well."

Henry was confused, he clearly saw how genuine both women were when they were talking about their son, but he also realized they weren't really talking about him. He became ashamed of what he had put this woman through, she was a loving mother, maybe not his mother but there was no denying how much she cared for her son and he instantly believed the entire story his mother had told him. This could not have been staged, he didn't really have an explanation but it just couldn't.

Emma and Regina were still holding onto each other, eyes locked on each other. The love so obviously reflected at one another they wondered how they had been so successful at ignoring it. Emma's eyes moved from Regina's eyes to her lips, the brunette's gaze following them, they moved back up to her eyes and they stared into each other's souls again. Emma gave Regina an almost painfully sexy look, desire flaring in her eyes. Regina closed the distance between them, capturing the blonde's lips in a firm kiss. Her hand tangling in blonde locks, making both their stomachs flutter pleasantly.

The feeling was so strong Regina's back was being healed by an invisible force, her aching arms felt normal and strong again and her feeble legs were able to support her weight without Emma's help. However she didn't let go of the love of her life. Never again! Both women forgot where they were or why - again - losing themselves in the moment. The power of their love seemed to have this effect. They were completely breathless in a couple of minutes and wondered why no one was stopping them. They tried to break away and after a couple of failed attempts they managed to look at each other without pressing their lips together. Or almost without... Emma swiftly caught Regina's lips with hers again, smiling mischievously into the kiss.

Regina returned the smile immediately and they looked at each other before losing themselves again. When they finally looked around at the people in the throne room they realized they were standing in the middle of a street, alone. Both women were stunned, it took them a moment before they realized they were standing in the middle of Main Street in Storybrooke. They had no idea what had happened or how...

They glanced around, both thinking someone had been successful in bringing them back but they both found the thought ridiculous... No one except for Rumple was clever enough to form a decent plan and he was too busy with Belle and their child to care about what was going on with the rest of town. As long as the Evil Queen or any of the heroes weren't bothering him, he was fine with whatever happened.

Both women stood there in each other's embraces not knowing how or what had happened. They didn't really care either, they were happy to be back and hoped they hadn't been gone too long. For all they knew years could have passed. Regina realized they had a lot to do before they could officially be together now they were back and kissed Emma again before moving out of the blonde's embrace.

"Let's find out what's going on here." The brunette told her smiling.

Emma was still a bit bemused from the events and the lingering kiss she'd just received and it took her a moment longer to catch up and reply, "Right, let's."


	10. Together

_**A/N: This is the final chapter and I want to thank each and every one of you for the support.**_

 _ **Sunday OUAT is back for the second half of probably the last season (at least as we have always known the show) and I only hope they take the right (read: SwanQueen = endgame) direction. I'm still hopeful they will btw...**_

 _ **I hope you like the 'ending' I wrote for you. Enjoy!**_

* * *

Both women didn't have to go far, they had barely moved at all when they saw people running up to them. Hook, David and Henry were all pleased to see both women standing in the middle of the street. Emma and Regina immediately walked up to their son and pulled him into a fierce hug.

"You have no idea how glad we are to see you!" they told him. Breathing had become a little difficult but the boy wasn't complaining. For a moment he thought he had lost his parents.

"I'm happy you are back!" He pulled back a little before firing off a couple of questions, "Where were you, how did you get back, are you hurt, have you..."

"Henry," Regina placed a gentle hand on his shoulder to stop the boy's rampant questioning, "if you want answers, one question at the time please." She smiled at him and so did his blonde mother, who pulled him briefly into a hug again. She smiled at him before letting go and started to explain where they had been.

"You know how I wished I never became the savior? Well, the Evil Queen granted my wish sending me to a realm in which my parents had succeeded and the Evil Queen had never cast her curse. I had grown up in their castle and I was a princess." Emma briefly looked away when she felt her cheeks coloring, remembering in what state Regina had first seen her.

Regina sensed the blonde's uneasiness and continued, "It was a really peaceful realm and I had a hard time convincing your mother that she was the savior and everything around her was a lie." She deliberately left out the parts about her sacrifice or the fact Henry had also been there, she hoped he would think he might never have been born since Emma and Neal never met in the Enchanted Forest in this realm.

Emma understood Regina better than anyone else and realized she might not be willing to talk about the things she had been through. She continued their story before Henry got the chance to question them, "Well, she managed to "wake me up" and fake Rumple handed us a bean to open a portal." She should have stopped there, then everyone would have just assumed they came through a portal but she didn't, "Of course leave it to your mother to let the portal close before we could get through." She looked to Regina with a shit eating grin on her face and Regina's cheeks colored as well.

It was meant as a private, innocent jest between both women. However the moment Henry asked his question they both realized it was a mistake, "Then how did you get back and why did you let the portal close, mom?"

Emma suppressed the urge to smack herself in the head trying to come up with a plausible explanation without giving too much away. But Regina was quicker and she answered solemnly, "Well, Robin showed up... he threatened to rob us, imagine my surprise to see him again."

Henry looked at her apologetically and hugged her once more. "I'm sorry, mom, I can only imagine how shocked you might have been to see him again." He looked to be contemplating something before asking his blonde mother, "Was Neal there as well?"

At the mention of Neal's name, Hook visibly reacted and Emma for the first time acknowledged his presence. She felt immensely guilty for not noticing him earlier and for all the things she had been doing behind his back. She quickly looked away, afraid he might be able to read her, which he never could but still... "No, Neal wasn't there. He'd died a hero a long time ago, he would have liked that."

Hook released the breath he had been holding and Emma's heart cringed some more, he was probably relieved about that little tidbit but he was in for a lot more. She didn't dare to look at him because her guilt was so heavy she was convinced even a blind person would be able to see it in her eyes. Regina and Emma were still standing close to each other, the brunette felt the shift in Emma and had to control herself not to reach out and physically comfort her.

Her reaction might have been minimal but Hook wasn't dumb or blind, he had noticed a difference between the women although they had barely been there for more than a couple of minutes, something was ... off, he sensed it. He chose not to comment on it yet. Neither women seemed to be willing to explain all that had happened to them over there though, they fell silent.

Henry however wasn't satisfied yet, he really wanted to know how they got back. Regina and Emma looked questioningly at each other, neither of them knew how to broach the topic without revealing everything already. Regina really wanted to give Emma the chance to speak to Hook first. Emma also wanted to be able to explain things to Hook first. She didn't want to hurt him any more than she was already going to do.

David had been silent the entire time, listening with great interest at them and their adventure. He sensed there was a lot they weren't ready to discuss yet. He knew his daughter well and he saw the discomfort clearly visible on her features. Even Regina looked uneasy, a look seldom shown on the brunette. Whatever it was they were hiding, he judged it wasn't pleasant.

"True love's kiss." It was a statement uttered by none other than Hook. Finally he had put the pieces together, he knew why both women looked happy and guilty at the same time.

Both Emma and Regina stared at him wide-eyed, for a brief moment Emma had wanted to deny it. Wanted to tell him, explain him ... but she was unsure what she really could say that would make this less painful. She had been using him all this time. He, like many others, had been the safe option. He was a man obviously, but women were expected to be with men and he was that. Her relationship with him felt normal. He was also there when Regina wasn't available and Emma had never expected Regina to be available to her until she showed up in the Wish Realm.

Her mouth opened and closed but no sound came out, Hook didn't give her the chance to speak anyway, "Don't, Emma, just ... don't. We both know it's true, _she_ is your true love, she has always been your true love and will always be. I was just a distraction, remember when I was a Dark One I told you I saw the real you?"

He didn't continue so Emma briefly nodded, tears welling in her eyes. "You were so afraid even then to accept who you really are. I told you you were nothing but a pretty blonde distraction but we both know I was the distraction. If I had been your true love you would have let me die when I begged you, not turn me into a Dark One. The fact you came to the underworld to save _me_ made me think I had been wrong but deep down I've always known but I was too selfish to let you go because no matter what you think, Swan, I have always loved you more than life itself. I would die a thousand deaths for you and I don't regret to have been with you..."

"Killian," Emma pleaded but she still didn't know what to say, tears were running freely over her cheeks, "I love you."

"I know you do, but you've never been in love with me. You have been lying to yourself and I let you and a better person wouldn't have done that but you made me happy and I wasn't strong enough to push you away. I'm sorry." Hook was also crying.

Regina, David and Henry were watching Hook and Emma's confessions and felt a bit uncomfortable but didn't dare to move afraid they might interrupt them. Henry was confused and had even more questions, it hurt him to see his mother crying like that but he understood it, not everything of course. David looked at Regina deep in thought she judged from the look on his face. He was probably trying to figure out how she could be his daughter's true love. And he was, he couldn't understand how he could not have seen this when it was so obvious, he couldn't believe he had never even considered Emma might be into women.

"Don't you dare apologizing, Killian!" Emma moved closer to him and hugged him, he hugged her back and for a moment the only two people that existed were them. Emma was the first to pull back, "What you did wasn't even half as bad as what I did to you. I'm sorry I should have been honest, I should have at least given you the courtesy to choose if you wanted to be my distraction but I had to push and push to prove you were indeed my true love. I was so afraid to lose everything I couldn't even let you go when you begged me to. I was selfish."

"We both were, Emma." Hook put his forehead gently against Emma's, "We both settled for less because I might have known before but chose not to see it, until I became a Dark One then there was no denying and still I chose to be with you against better judgment. We both used each other for our own egoistic reasons." He smiled and Emma's face matched his, they both chuckled at the absurdity of the situation. He placed a warm kiss on her forehead and said, "Don't be afraid, Swan, your fear has always pushed everyone away maybe it's time to fully accept who you really are."

Hook again smiled at her and winked before adding, "And you know where to find me if you somehow manage to mess this up." He gestured from her to Regina and Emma punched his arm with her fist teasingly. He really was a changed man and he would always be a good friend too she realized. She remembered they weren't alone during this exchange and she blushed when she turned back to look at Regina shyly.

Regina gave her a reassuring smile to show her she had done great and the brunette meant it, she hadn't expected the conversation to go this well. She had been afraid a lot more verbal abuse would have been part of it and she couldn't be happier that it hadn't, for both of them. Emma smiled back at her and moved closer to Regina, who automatically held out her hand when the blonde was close enough to grab it. The brunette playfully pulled her closer and Emma feeling rather emotional couldn't help but kiss her cheek adoringly.

Hook rolled his eyes still a little unsure how it had taken all of them this long to see what had been there from the start. He noticed David was still stuck somewhere deep within his own mind and clasped a hand on his shoulder hoping to bring him back to the present, "Well, mate, what do you think of this fairytale? The Evil Queen and the Savior, true love." Hook couldn't help but laugh earning him a glare from everyone except Henry, he was watching his moms with interest.

He had always known there was more to them, he never suspected them to be each other's true loves but he also never believed Hood and Hook were their true loves either. Since he gained his author skills he was even more convinced of this because he had now a lot more knowledge and he knew the curse was still not completely broken, that meant that neither of his moms had found what they were looking for yet. He wondered what exactly would happen when they broke the curse completely but that wasn't the most urgent thing.

"So, you two finally found your happy ending?" Henry smiled at his moms.

"Well, kid, I wouldn't call it an ending yet..." his blonde mom answered honestly. "But I do love your mom, I always have or almost always anyway."

Regina couldn't help but roll her eyes, Emma was absolutely adorable when she was trying to be a smartass. "I love her too, Henry, and I think for me it was love at first sight but I wasn't capable of love and I was too afraid of the consequences so I pushed her away or at least tried to..." She gave Emma a knowing look because the harder she had pushed the more convinced the blonde had been to chase her and challenge her and try to befriend her.

Henry hugged both his moms expressing how happy he was they were finally a whole family. He just realized this was how it was always meant to be because he had never been happier. He would never have to choose between his moms anymore and his moms would finally have the family they had been searching for their entire life. Both women were happy their son had accepted them so easily but neither one had been really afraid he wouldn't. Even Wish Henry had been understanding of their love and he was a lot less open-minded than their real son.

Regina watched her son and her girlfriend and her heart skipped a beat, she was so happy she was afraid she would somehow mess it up and simultaneously she knew everything would be alright. She also realized she and her evil half hadn't really split because she was both. The love she felt for Emma would forever keep the darkness at bay but the darkness would always be a part of her. She might have given it a real form but she had felt it inside of her in the Wish Realm and she knew full well her heart was still partly black. But she was capable of love and she had always been capable of it, only she had chosen her love for revenge above the real deal. All because she was afraid and she knew that if she hadn't she would never have met Emma in the way they were meant to be.

If she had chosen to forgive Snow, Emma would have been raised in the Enchanted Forest and they would never have been together because they would have been family in an entirely different way. The fact she hadn't listened to reason and Rumple's words about not being able to escape faith came back to her. This was always meant to be and no matter how dark her past had been, she had forgiven herself a long time ago. She had showed everyone that she was capable of doing the right thing, that she was capable of love and forgiveness. She just needed the Evil Queen to realize this as well and merge back together with her and be whole again.

Emma watched Regina and their son and her heart swelled, never had she believed this was possible. She was going to have everything she ever wanted, a real home and a family. She wasn't sure when and how they would move forward but they would and that was all that mattered. She realized something else, her hand wasn't twitching when she thought about the future. She wasn't afraid of the premonition anymore, that was new. She smiled widely and pulled Regina flush against her, looking deeply into her eyes, she wetted her lips and watched Regina's pupils dilate. She closed the distance between them, kissing her deeply but still PG enough with their son standing there.

"Moms, please! That's embarrassing..." Henry whined and a smiling Regina and Emma pulled back.

"Get used to it, kid, because we have six years to make up for." Emma said while ruffling his hair. Henry rolled his eyes in a very Regina like manner before walking away from them, his cheeks still a deep shade of red.

He muttered, "I'm going to live with grandma and grandpa for a month or two I think."

His mothers had heard him loud and clear and smiled at each other, they liked to tease their son and a little embarrassment never hurt anybody. They followed their son still holding hands. There were a lot of things that needed be done before they could have a real future together but neither women was afraid of that anymore. One thing was abundantly clear, they would get it ... together.

* * *

 _ **I chose an open ending because I want to be able to write a sequel at some point. I don't have any concrete ideas about one but I just like to have the chance... The more the real show messes it up, the likelier the chance of me writing one ;-).  
**_


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